March saw a significant jump in both the average and median selling prices recorded by Auckland's largest real estate agency Barfoot & Thompson.
Barfoot & Thompson's median selling price rose $80,000 (8.2%) to $1,050,000 in March from February, but was still down $190,000 compared to the record high of $1,240,000 set in November 2021.
There was an even bigger increase in the agency's average price in March which was $1,227,495. That's up $111,345 (10%) compared to February, and is edging closer to the record high of $1,278,647 set in December 2021.
The fact that the average selling price increased at a greater rate than the median price suggests there was a shift towards the upper end of the market in March.
Sales volumes were also up with the agency selling 1061 residential properties in March, up by 39% compared to March last year, but still well below the record of 1844 achieved in March 2021.
The bad news in the latest figures is the very high stock levels on the agency's books.
Barfoot & Thompson had a total of 5741 residential properties available for sale at the end of March, up 21% compared to March last year.
That means the current level of stock available for sale is the highest it has been in any month of the year for at least 10 years.
The high level of stock is especially worrying because stock levels continued to increase in March even though sales numbers rose strongly and new listings decreased.
"March was the most active trading month the Auckland housing market has experienced in the past two years," Barfoot & Thompson Managing Director Peter Thompson said.
"Buyers made the decision that at current prices, property represented value for money and that they were prepared to live with mortgage rates at current levels.
"A feature of March's sales was the return in strength of buyers at the top end of the market, with 89 homes being sold for more than $2 million and of these, 27 sold for more than $3 million."
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