House values are continuing to slide - falling nationally by 2% in the three months to August, according to Quotable Value.
The average national value stood at $905,357 last month - down from $909,517 in July, and essentially flat since the end of 2023.
The largest city, Auckland, has now recorded declines in average value for seven consecutive months. The average value dropped $5,958 in August to $1,232,455.
Since January, average values in Auckland have declined by $58,932, which works out at $8,419 every month, or about $1,940 a week ($11.50 an hour). The rate of decline in August (0.5%) was a little slower than it had been in July.
QV notes house prices around the country "do not yet reflect the marked increase in consumer confidence following recent interest rate cuts".
QV operations manager James Wilson said the nationwide value trend was reflective of a housing market that has been "severely constricted by strong economic headwinds – including rising unemployment, credit constraints and, of course, high interest rates".
"Now that interest rates are finally coming down, we are seeing renewed interest in housing generally across the country. However, this won’t necessarily translate into home value growth while there’s such an excess of stock available for sale. Values will tighten again when prospective buyers aren’t as spoilt for choice as they are currently, which could take a while," he said.
It was the largest cities that experienced the largest average home value declines in the three months to August. Home values in Auckland and Wellington reduced by 2.8% and 3% respectively, while Hamilton (-1.7%), Tauranga (-1.5%), Christchurch (-1.3%) and Dunedin (-1.1%) also recorded modest home value reductions during the period.
Relative bright spots were few, but Rotorua saw a 8.7% spike in values to an average of $723,488.
However, among the 16 regions, there were 12 that saw declines and just four with rises in value.
Wilson said "an abundance" of real estate listings, especially in and around the biggest cities, is expected to "keep a firm lid on home value growth", even as increasing numbers of buyers start coming out of the woodwork as we move into spring.
He expects to see "even more" listings in the coming months as the spring real estate selling season starts ramping up again.
"More investors will look to sell properties following the changes to the bright line test back in July, and sellers who pulled their listings after trying and failing to sell earlier in the year may even look to try again now that there’s an uptick in activity and a general sense that confidence amongst buyers is increasing."
Wilson said this would continue to promote soft-to-flat value conditions nationally in the short term.
"Spring has sprung and interest rates are coming down – but don’t expect to see house prices suddenly take off again soon."
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