Bayleys & B&T sold about half the offerings at their latest auctions

Property

Fewer property auctions as we head towards winter but 50%+ sales rate at Barfoot and Bayleys auctions

4th May 17, 10:24am by Greg Ninness

The number of properties being auctioned is starting to wind down as we head towards winter, although last week's sales rates held up reasonably well.

Barfoot & Thompson marketed 76 residential properties for sale by auction last week and sold 40 of them, giving a sales clearance rate of 53%.

Bayleys marketed 22 properties for sale by auction and sold exactly half of them.

Barfoot did not have their usual big auction at Manukau last week and does not have one scheduled for this week, although one will be taking place later in the month.

At the North Shore auction 10 of the 22 properties were sold, and at one of the larger Shortland St auctions, 15 of the 25 properties were sold.

Sales were slower for properties auctioned on site, with sales achieved on just three of the 11 properties offered on site.

Exactly half (20) of the properties that were sold at auction by Barfoot last week sold at prices below $1 million.

Highlights of the Bayleys' auctions included a 1217 square metre development site with three dwellings on it which had views across the Milford Marina and Hauraki Gulf and sold for $3.66 million, and a four bedroom executive home with a heated pool on a 4 hectare lifestyle block at Kumeu, which went for $2.235 million.

At the other end of the price scale a modernised 1950s-era three bedroom house at Beach Haven on the North Shore fetched $800,000 and a refurbished 1960s-era three bedroom house in Titirangi went for $885,000.

To see the full results with the prices of individual properties that sold and details of those that didn't sell, go to our Auction Results page.

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9 Comments

by NorthernLights | 4th May 17, 2:40pm 1493865625

The National e con miracle example
A simple BeachHaven house could be a $800,000 house If only enough fools believe it to be worth so and borrow accordingly along with a whole truckload of foreigners grey money hoping to find a hiding place.
Perhaps National deserve a 4th term so they can be in power to fully take responsibility for their mess ?
Alas like John Key they will want to drop the hot potato to someone else

by tothepoint - d… | 4th May 17, 5:05pm 1493874315

A 50 per cent auction clearance rate doesn't sound too bad to me - especially given all the gloom and doom being preached on this forum over the last week or so.

I thought it was the beginning of the end for property - but perhaps I should have another think......

by Simo | 4th May 17, 6:03pm 1493877805

No it is the end of the beginning, of the end, the main event is still ahead...

by Triple | 4th May 17, 8:30pm 1493886603

hmmm.... here are the Barfoots auction results under the hammer this week:

Manukau sold 3 out of 29 = 10% success
Bays area 1 out 4 = 25% success
Epsom 3 out of 6 = 50% success
City 1 out of 4 = 25% success

So the actual results are crap, once again. But for all those who want to continue living in lala land, just keep on denying and I'm sure all your debt problems will disappear.

by tothepoint - d… | 4th May 17, 11:13pm 1493896383

For sure, there will be those who have got themselves donkey-deep in housing debt.

Every now and again the market needs a flushing out to deal with such "lala land" people. They are not worldly-wise and astute long-term property investors. Purging them from the market, nonetheless, often creates good opportunities for others.

We might well see some of this effect go on through 2017...... and it wouldn't be a bad thing.

But it would be naive to assume the whole Auckland property market is going to falter and fall over. I can understand the fantasies: the wishful thinking and pipe-dreams of those who think they'll soon be able to pick up Auckland Central properties at give-away prices. But sorry folks, that ain't going to happen..... (We'd all be in, boots and all, wouldn't we?)

A much more realistic scenario for Auckland is that after a 2-3 year boom, sales will slow and there will be a plateauing (or much slower growth) in prices for an extended period. And that wouldn't be a bad thing either.

But looking out 5-10 years, chances are Auckland prices will be considerably higher than they are now. My pick is that areas closest to the city will support the biggest price gains, as buyers seek to avoid transport/traffic problems.

by Simo | 4th May 17, 10:36pm 1493894167

You seem to have your own fantasies, wishful thinking and pipe dreams. Good luck with that Crystal ball.

by Triple | 4th May 17, 10:52pm 1493895144

"But it would be naive to assume the whole Auckland property market is going to falter and fall over."

Actually it's naïve to think it won't fall over. The media and vested interests can spin their best yarn - but I saw apartment owners I personally knew go bankrupt post 2007 crash getting 50 cents to the dollar spent. And I saw northern side St Heliers Bay estates sell 30% below CV (but of course the top end never falls right).

I know people who were property investors post 1987 crash (late 80's) who said most property investors got slaughtered. This particular investor was only 50% geared and he only survived on credit cards just long enough to get through the tough times.

So good luck to those highly leveraged - they're gonna need it to survive what's coming.

by TainuiBabe | 4th May 17, 10:19pm 1493893150

A likely war with North Korea might take care of the over valuated housing market along with a king hit to share markets. It happens at least once in the lifetime of an adult human being. The question is, where to invest without loosing your shirt?

by tothepoint - d… | 5th May 17, 12:03am 1493899438

Some of you guys just don't understand property......

It's not a particularly liquid asset - like shares or bonds - where there's an inherently high degree of price volatility. Neither do the majority of people enter property investment for the short term. Most people are long-term investors and in countries like NZ, a huge proportion of the middle-income class and the wealthy are passionate about maintaining and steadily growing their property interests over time. They resist selling and are typically smart enough to ride out the low points of the cycles. It's not just economic/financial; it's emotive as well.

So there are many built-in (automatic) stabilisers in the housing market. Sure, there can be short-term falls (and the occasional property developer or speculator loses their shirt) but that's not the norm.

In any case the property market always bounces back. That's unlike financial investments, which once lost, are never regained. NZers have got savvy about this sort of thing - especially since the GFC and all the finance company failures.

Buy well located property, manage it prudently and hold for the long-term and you have a recipe for success. And, of course, most people in property have cottoned onto that long ago.

Finally, NZ is not comparable with markets like Western Australia. You can't argue that busts in this, that or the other country mean we're going to have a bust in NZ! Internationally, NZ is a much preferred country to live in. There's enormous pent up demand for NZ property - and certainly Auckland. Uncertainty abroad (Trump, Brexit etc) make this increasingly so.