Another very busy week in auction rooms, but the sales rate took a steep dive

Property / news

Sales rate at the latest auctions dropped to just under a third

16th Dec 23, 6:12am by Greg Ninness

Residential auction rooms are remaining busy right up until Christmas with 512 properties offered at the auctions monitored by interest.co.nz in the week of 9-15 December.

That made it the second busiest week of the year, only beaten by the 566 properties offered in the week of 25 November to 1 December.

However while the number of properties offered was very high, the sales rate took a tumble.

Off the 512 properties offered at the latest auctions, 165 were sold under the hammer, giving an overall sales rate of 32%.

That was the lowest overall sales rate at auctions monitored by interest.co.nz since early March, which suggests auction activity may be ending the year on a soft note.

However there's still another week to go before the market winds up for the year. And the latest Orders of Sale suggest next week will also have more properties on offer than would usually be expected for the time of year, although the number of properties offered will be well down from the latest results.

The table below shows the district by district results from the latest monitored auctions around the country.

Details of the individual properties offered at all of the auctions we monitor, including the selling prices of those that sold, are available on our Residential Auction Results page.

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74 Comments

by tothepoint | 16th Dec 23, 7:01am 1702663319

Quiet end to the year......

But, overall, the housing market is more buoyant than 12 months ago - by a good margin - with firmer selling prices.

TTP

by IT GUY | 16th Dec 23, 8:36am 1702668969

more accurately they are sometimes selling, the average in Auckland seems to be around late 900s was 1.3 mill at the peak

more listing will lower prices in 2024

by Flying high | 16th Dec 23, 9:56am 1702673817

Its a new day, a new era of hope, out with the old. I can finally look ahead and see the sunshine. Others will also feel hopeful TTP and that will cause momentum and build on itself a little in 2024

To the brave souls who bought in 2023, well done for picking the low

by Retired-Poppy | 16th Dec 23, 10:37am 1702676266

by Flying high | 1st Dec 23, 7:16am - "Buying early 2024, looking now as it takes months to find the right place"

Are you Arthur or Martha? 😂

by Flying high | 17th Dec 23, 1:22pm 1702772563

In 2024 you will be sprinting to the bank to break that TD at the first sign of falling retail interest rates. So that you can reinvest in bonds or property shares. By then it will be too late of course :((((

by Retired-Poppy | 17th Dec 23, 3:30pm 1702780252

Nah, that can't be right. According to Zwifter now that we're past October, it's already too late to catch the Ark!

Thanks for the laughs :)

by Zwifter | 16th Dec 23, 10:19am 1702675178

Time to buy was August until October 2023 pre election.

by GetFeeling | 16th Dec 23, 2:44pm 1702691080

Far too early to make that call. More so with a full blown recession looming.

by kiwikidsnz | 16th Dec 23, 7:04am 1702663497

"Off the 512 properties offered at the latest auctions, 165 were sold under the hammer, giving an overall sales rate of 32%."

Clearly vendors still want too much money for their properties, they must be listening to RE agents.

by Blackdog | 16th Dec 23, 8:00am 1702666812

good time to lock in a bargain ahead of the OCR being slashed

by GetFeeling | 16th Dec 23, 2:49pm 1702691396

If the OCR is slashed it'll be because the economy is tanking (or has tanked) and unemployment is rising fast, with banks being very careful to lend only to those that are very safe. And those who may be 'safe', may not be able to buy due to DTIs or LVRs.

Those conditions are not conducive to house price increases.

by TronMVP | 16th Dec 23, 10:57pm 1702720645

Banks will reduce their 2-5 year rates well before the OCR is slashed.

Eventually the RB will cut the OCR when we have deflation in a quarter, and that might be sooner than you think.

by Speedmax | 17th Dec 23, 12:55am 1702727759

There are no bargains in the NZ property market - just look at prices in almost any other country (except Aus) for confirmation

by Flying high | 17th Dec 23, 8:01am 1702753292

Nz and aus are like two expensive neighbourhoods, remuera (aus) and meadowbank (nz) Everyone wants to get in, so it keeps pushing the prices.

by 1689 Baptist | 16th Dec 23, 9:08am 1702670914

RE agents speak of how valuable a property is to get the listing, then they are constantly telling the vendor to be realistic and lower the asking price.

by Flying high | 16th Dec 23, 10:01am 1702674063

I have a mate who is selling his good property, silly boy. He was smart enough to ask the agents right from the start would they still be happy to work for him if he stuck to his high expectation. That way everyone was in the picture from the beginning.

by Averageman | 16th Dec 23, 9:43am 1702673016

Made a good offer last week. The agent clearly had positioned more. The vendor (a family) have inherited from parents, aka a free property. Greed did kick in and they will wait till 2024.

It's a holiday location that interest will wane post holidays. The RBNZ will be free from labour constraints, so who knows what the next OCR review will bring. Cashflows will be hit with all tax due in early 2024. I can wait, so no worries.

So back to price by speculation it goes....

by Flying high | 16th Dec 23, 10:06am 1702674374

Let us know how it goes av-man. Sounds like you are just talking about price, you have to find out what else matters to the vendors

by Nellbell | 16th Dec 23, 1:06pm 1702685170

Not so sure, made a very clean cash offer this week, flexible settlement date. Offered at valuation price across all the valuation website ( top of the price range given) and the vendors still wanted another $100,000 and would not negotiate - so we walked away. There is still a lot of greed around, sellers are still hanging on to 2021 prices. One agent - different property - told me that one vendor told them that they “can’t drop the price or they would be losing money” ( from the imaginary 2021 price). Still needs a little more pressure in the market to make vendors move. Listings here are very very high, only first homes selling. So I agree next year will be a better time to buy.

by Flying high | 17th Dec 23, 8:06am 1702753611

What makes you think prices will be lower in 2024. But one thing I agree, the house prices in January 24 will be lower than Dec 2024, housing costs look set to become more affordable as wages rise and interest rates fall. You will have more competition for the limited listings in your price range

by swapacrate | 17th Dec 23, 2:15pm 1702775713

Not sure where you get that from interest.co.nz own site they say a little bit different. Why will wages rise if businesses are feeling the pinch and unemployment rises. Do you have different sources.

https://www.interest.co.nz/personal-finance/125466/david-hargreaves-exp…

by Nellbell | 17th Dec 23, 5:35pm 1702787724

Supply and demand. Here, we have an ever increasing pool of listings…. Very few buyers, and the number of cash buyers is tiny - many vendors here have been trying to get sales with conditional contracts ( conditional on the sale of the purchasers property), some doing this for 9-12 months. The ones I know the details of have failed to sell. So if you really need to sell then you will need to present the most attractive price amongst the many listings of similar properties - simple as that. I think there will be more pressure to sell next year and downward pressure on prices.

by Yvil | 16th Dec 23, 12:22pm 1702682579

Averageman, now, at the beginning of summer, is the worst time to buy a place in a holiday spot. Try again in winter, when the weather is miserable and there are no buyers, you will find the vendors much keener to negotiate on price.

Also, if you like the house in winter, you'll love it in summer, but if you like the house in summer, you may find out you hate it in winter.

Good luck to you.

by Averageman | 16th Dec 23, 12:34pm 1702683275

Unless it's a ski location with nothing on in the summer. Thanks...but not my first rodeo. Very unsophisticated sellers purely at agents whim. No free money for Xmas. For either.

by General Comment | 16th Dec 23, 7:11am 1702663887

Hawkes Bay: 0 for 5 in a remote holiday beach town in a cyclone-devastated area during a recession, and 0 for 1 in a location being energetically reclaimed by local iwi. Anyone surprised?

by Retired-Poppy | 16th Dec 23, 7:33am 1702665214

With our economy once again contracting, the current state of the market at what is traditionally the busiest time of the year is "sales rate took a steep dive" and "buyers market may be on the horizon" with listings steadily increasing....

Trend is your friend in a market that's far from healthy.

by Nifty1 | 16th Dec 23, 7:47am 1702666029

For a first home buyer the trend of increasing house prices is not your friend... nor is immigrants flooding the country and pushing up rents.

by Zwifter | 16th Dec 23, 10:04am 1702674277

Percentage sold above RV is climbing.

by 1689 Baptist | 16th Dec 23, 10:34am 1702676083

I was thinking the same thing initially. But there are enough errors in the data that this might not actually be the case.

by Nellbell | 16th Dec 23, 1:18pm 1702685884

You can’t rely on that as an indicator as CV are being continually updated by QV. So on that list of sold properties there will be CVs from 2020 right through to 2023.

by Justa comment | 16th Dec 23, 12:40pm 1702683619

Yes they might have arrived but like anybody else cant afford 7% interest if the house is a million bucks. Auckland looks like quality property is selling, but the bell-weather south and west auckland investor markets are weak. RBNZ will be very happy that there has been no out of control buying this spring.

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 8:52am 1702669965

"Market that is far from healthy "... is an outcome of vendors being far from healthy

by Speedmax | 17th Dec 23, 1:13am 1702728781

Exactly. Falling prices = Recovering (more sensibly priced) market.

In a market for any other goods, prices falling from unaffordable levels is seen as good. So many people whinge about the increasing price of food, or petrol, electricity or whatever, and cheer when price of houses goes up….

by Dgm | 17th Dec 23, 9:06am 1702757219

I would state that this is the most pragmatic statement I have read in a while..

by redcows1 | 17th Dec 23, 9:11am 1702757493

Been banging that drum for years too. Only winner is the mortgage lenders with a consistently growing portfolio size that then captures an increasing chunk of the economy creamed of the top. Increasing value on a physically depreciating asset defies all logic but the country literally buys into it. Infact as a country we sadly hang everything on it.

by Flying high | 17th Dec 23, 10:34am 1702762447

cheer when price of houses goes up...

Depns which side of the fence you're on, renter/owner/multi house owner. Duh

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 7:44am 1702665882

RIP housing. market, this will surely make the vendors realistic, so you maybe resurrected next year

by IT GUY | 16th Dec 23, 7:50am 1702666204

first stop loss has been passed moving onwards and lower, the thing about stop-losses is that the get more expensive as you dither.....

Coming to a BBQ near you

"this leveraged loss is not flash aye"

by Nellbell | 16th Dec 23, 1:21pm 1702686076

Yes and houses are not as easy to liquidate as shares are.

by 1689 Baptist | 16th Dec 23, 9:14am 1702671240

It's not dead. It's just taking a rest after a long squawk

by Iceman | 16th Dec 23, 11:10am 1702678204

What investing experience do you actually have? Based on what you type, I think you’re just sour at the increased rent by your landlord.

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 11:44am 1702680266

I experience bliss, while you experience anxiety/ hatred/ despair

by Iceman | 16th Dec 23, 12:12pm 1702681963

Thanks for confirming you experience jealousy and tall poppy.

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 12:32pm 1702683137

Whatever makes you happy, sadman

by Iceman | 16th Dec 23, 1:56pm 1702688188

Talking to you is akin to talking to a child. What are you doing on a big boys forum?

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 2:28pm 1702690122

Talking to you is no different from conversing with a retard.. do you even comprehend what's happening

You have to be thick skinned to consistently reply to my comments, even though I give you shit

by Yvil | 16th Dec 23, 2:50pm 1702691415

Have you two considered that you're very alike? Just with a different opinion when it comes to housing ?

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 2:55pm 1702691701

You are definitely no different from sadman.. so rich coming from you

by Iceman | 16th Dec 23, 2:55pm 1702691702

And then you proceed to use words like retard, confirming your character for all to witness here. You seem like a very sad lonely pessimistic person, I do feel for the people around you who have to put up with your pathetic self. Also, def sound like a teenager.

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 2:57pm 1702691876

Definitely confirming you are thick in the head and skin

by Dgm | 16th Dec 23, 11:51am 1702680692

I experience bliss, while you experience anxiety/ hatred/ despair

by stefanblaise | 16th Dec 23, 8:17am 1702667854

Rodney figures incorrect.

by 1689 Baptist | 16th Dec 23, 9:05am 1702670736

50% of the 1 house that sold in Whanganui went above it's CV.

Interesting.

by The Black Swan | 16th Dec 23, 9:14am 1702671299

I went to an auction for a St Mary's bay house on Wednesday, 3 bed, 2 bathroom that had been recently renovated. Sold for 27% under CV.

by Zwifter | 16th Dec 23, 10:05am 1702674307

Overall percentages of those sold above RV is climbing now.

by Three Veg | 16th Dec 23, 11:31am 1702679495

Beware survivorship bias at these low sale rates

by Yvil | 16th Dec 23, 10:50am 1702677023

Did you manage to get it, BS?

by The Black Swan | 16th Dec 23, 11:45am 1702680350

I'm staying out of property until at least 2026, so was just an interested bystander but even I was surprised by the result in prime a blue chip location.

by Yvil | 16th Dec 23, 12:24pm 1702682655

I live in St Marys Bay, so I know the area pretty well, I can't figure out a house that matches your description, what was the address please? Thanks.

by vman | 16th Dec 23, 12:13pm 1702681981

I'm guessing that was you at Bunnings Grey Lynn the other day then Yvil....what is the meaning of your moniker / personalised plate?

by The Black Swan | 16th Dec 23, 7:04pm 1702706651

21 St Mary's road, CV 2.9 - Sold for 2.1 - https://www.oneroof.co.nz/property/auckland/saint-marys-bay/21-saint-ma…

by Yvil | 17th Dec 23, 12:24am 1702725882

Thanks 🙏

by Speedmax | 17th Dec 23, 1:23am 1702729392

OneRoof est was 2.635 lol! So out of touch. Actual selling price 5% above 2017 CV

by Yvil | 17th Dec 23, 12:57pm 1702771039

Just saw it, it's not much of a house, tiny and old, no off street parking either. I think $2.1 M is fair, no way it's wirth $2.9 M.

by DisabledLowWag… | 17th Dec 23, 1:19pm 1702772360

Recently sold for 1.835 in Herne Bay. CV is2. 3

https://www.bayleys.co.nz/listings/residential/auckland/auckland/6-cox-…

by General Comment | 18th Dec 23, 9:33am 1702845187

Small house with a renovated half-underground bunker on a sloping, postage stamp-sized piece of land and no parking, I'd say $1.835M is a massive amount for that, and the CV was even more ridiculous. Just looking around the area in Google Streetview is giving me claustrophobia.

by Atarangi | 17th Dec 23, 2:48pm 1702777730

Agree with you Yvil - it’s a couple of blocks away from me so I was interested when it came onto the market. I was surprised it sold at auction, but $2.1M seems about right. It’s a mid quality house that needs work, no off-street parking and backs on to a large development site which is on the market at present. It’ll be highly overlooked if they develop the currently consented scheme.

by Rob Reid | 16th Dec 23, 11:36am 1702679766

Not surprising. A Black Swan came along and, HONK.

by John Mendel | 16th Dec 23, 3:23pm 1702693411

This is time to buy!

As soon as interest rates start to fall, prices will jump.

A good investor follows the trend, not the rate.

by IT GUY | 16th Dec 23, 4:56pm 1702698997

Good investors buy value rather then pay price, at the moment there is no value....

by Yvil | 17th Dec 23, 12:58pm 1702771105

Good investors create value!

by IT GUY | 17th Dec 23, 5:47pm 1702788425

Yes Yvil like subdividing the good buys you previously made as at the moment its hard to find good buys....

by CN - new | 17th Dec 23, 6:22pm 1702790560

That means getting into the property development business, property renovation business, or property trading business.

There is a small proportion of the total population who want to get into those businesses. As the property prices rose, more and more newbies got into that game.

Saw a report of one guy who got into the land development / subdivision business. Might lose his entire fortune and go into bankruptcy aged in his late 50's.

by starrider | 19th Dec 23, 10:08am 1702933721

Massive glut of supply to come on in Feb. With an ever-dwindling amount of buyers still constrained by 9% stress test mortgage borrowing.

The RBNZ will not be dropping the OCR until we have a recession. As inflation is nowhere near 2% after a 2 year battle to bring it down.