There was a significant decline in both the number of residential properties sold by Auckland's largest real estate agency in April and in their average and median selling prices.
Barfoot & Thompson sold 688 residential properties in April, down by -18% compared to April last year.
That was also the lowest number of sales made by the agency in the month of April since 2023, however it followed on from an usually high number of sales in March, when 1262 properties were sold, which was the most in the month of March since 2016.
The figures suggest the summer selling season came to an abrupt end in April.
April's prices were also slightly softer compared to March, with the agency's average selling price declining by $45,326 (-3.9%) to $1,131, 246, although that was still up by $20,557 (+1.9%) compared to April last year.
The median selling price was $955,250 in April, down by a more substantial $74,750 (-7.3%) compared to March, but was still up by $21,250 (+2.3%) compared to April last year.Â
However while sales levels and prices declined in April, new listings and the agency's total stock for sale both remained at very high levels.
Barfoot's received 1744 new residential listings in April, up +10.5% compared to April last year, while the agency had a total of 6356 residential properties for sale at the end of April, up +4.0% compared to April last year.
The number of new listings received was at a 21 year high for the month of April, and the total amount of stock for sale last month was at an 18 year high for the month, so prospective buyers will have plenty of choice heading into winter.
"April is often a difficult month to read clearly and this year is no exception," Barfoot & Thompson Managing Director Peter Thompson said.
"With school holidays, Easter and Anzac Day all falling across the period, activity typically softens from the March peak, making month-on-month comparisons less reliable than long term trends," he said
"With global uncertainty, fuel costs and broader economic pressures still in the background, conditions favour well prepared sellers and well advised buyers," Thompson said.
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19 Comments
Down, down and down in ponzi town. For the over leveraged specu tax avoiders...thats three downs. As in numerals "3".
The only growth is new listings and unsold listings. If those with greed blindness cant feel the truth arriving, they fully deserve what is unfolding.
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The HPI is a more accurate, quality-adjusted measure of NZ property value trends than the median price as it excludes the skewing effects of changing sales volume or mix (e.g. selling more luxury homes in one month, or more townhouses in another month). As of early 2026, HPI shows a flatter trend compared to volatile median prices.
can you point me to how they calculate the HPI, like a Github or the modelling etc etc
or is this a magic closed shop (like making Sausages ie if you saw what went in you would not eat it) index made up by the unReal estate community?
In Theory the HPI sounds great, whats behind the curtains?
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Some smoothed regression lines would be useful, given the lumpiness of the data and the small sample sizes.Â
The median selling price was $955,250 in April, down by a substantial $74,750 (-7.3%) compared to March,
Ouch, that's hell of a drop
But was still up by $21,250 (+2.3%) compared to April last year
Oh, so it's actually up when compared to the same month, never mind the click bait headline.
And down by $284,750 from its November 2021 peak. There's only so much information you can get in a headline Yvil.
If the current trends continue that will be -300k in no time. Or about ten years of minimum wage after tax assuming no other costs... including food.
Current trends is up 2.3% a year isn’t it?
“Inventory up, prices flat” would be an adequate headline. No need to mention what happened 5 years ago.Â
And down by $284,750 from its November 2021 peak. There's only so much information you can get in a headline Yvil.
Brutal response. Poor old Dr Y sent hurtling across the room.Â
it felt like that wrestling move where they put you on their shoulders and spin you like a helicopter, before throwing you on the mat
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And up by $425,000 from 2015. There's only so much information you can get in a headline Greg.
And up by $425,000 from 2015. There's only so much information you can get in a headline Greg.
I can play this silly game too.
How about we use accepted standard comparisons to the same month 12 months ago instead of picking specific dates to create a headline.
Speaking from someone who has a house and had a 20% downward revaluation in the last round of R.V's: I think its fantastic that house prices are declining towards the point that it becomes possible for more people to afford their own at some stage in their lives. I still think it has some way to go but it's moving in the right direction.
NZ house prices just became non-sensical. I only hope the building industry can wind back their prices somewhat.
I think its fantastic that house prices are declining towards the point that it becomes possible for more people to afford their own at some stage in their lives.
Let me be the curmudgeon here. There are other impacts to consider such as the psychological impacts on spending caused by loss aversion. For ex,
1, Loss aversion works off the owner’s mental reference price, which can be an anchor like the “peak valuation” they saw during a boom, not only the purchase price.
2. If owners believe prices have fallen from that peak, they tend to treat current offers as losses, leading them to hold out for higher prices or withdraw from the market, reducing liquidity in downturns.
3. Empirical work on appraisal and valuation bias shows appraisers and owners both exhibit loss‑averse behavior, contributing to downward stickiness when market prices are believed to be below those reference levels [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S105113772200002X]
And in practical terms, this potentially sets a scene where people are reluctant to spend in the wider economy. Businesses suffer causing a negative feedback loop in to the ailing Ponzi. This exacerbates further price falls. In a worse case scenario, you might have cheaper house prices for the younger demogs, but your economy is so poked that the potential buyers are in no position to buy the houses. Â
Agreed. Specu sellers will rather eat expired pet food than swallow a capital loss on their ponzi expectations. Fortunately there are plenty of sellers that are happy to take market (lower) and move onto their next whatever.
And in practical terms, this potentially sets a scene where people are reluctant to spend in the wider economy. Businesses suffer causing a negative feedback loop in to the ailing Ponzi. This exacerbates further price falls.
It would be hard for some to swallow, but better for NZ in the long term. As you already know, it takes time and tangible impact for behaviours to change. For intergenerational investment decisions being highly targeted to property, this will take longer than most to adapt to. Humans will innovate, try new ideas and find new goods and services to offer others despite this. the sun will rise and set reardless.
The negative feedback loop theory is not set in stone. I'm simply pointing out trade-offs.Â
People are shrieking about butter prices. Shamubeel Eaqub also explained the injustices of local vs imported butter. Even though Shamubeel is not a fan of Ponzinomics, he seems to not understand that the relationship between the Ponzi and consumer prices. For ex, when credit is allocated to non-productive purposes, costs increase from production to shelf - across the whole supply chain. It's not necessarily and simply a matter of Fonterra and the duopoly being "greedy." If shelf prices of butter fell 10-20%, that would mean gross margins across the supply chain would have to fall by a requisite proportion. Assume a margin of 30% and a price decrease of 10%, incremental sales would have to increase 50% to break even. Â
Buyers can be driven by loss aversion too right?Â
ie they don't want to over pay in a market trending down, or the classic fomo fed to them
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