Queenstown leads fall in house prices
Prices paid for houses fell only modestly in June as Government economic support and widespread mortgage holidays prevented a wave of forced sales.
QV has released its latest statistics showing nationwide house prices fell just 0.2 per cent in the month of June, though some places saw price gains, such as Christchurch and Tauranga which both reported rises of a modest 0.2 per cent.
Queenstown saw the biggest price falls, QV found, but even in a city so dependent on stalled international tourism prices fell only 2.1 per cent during the month.
But uncertainty surrounding whether banks would allow tens of thousands of households on mortgage holidays to extend them beyond their six-month terms made Nick Goodall, head of research at QV’s parent company Core Logic, ‘‘cautious’’ about the direction house prices would take during the remainder of the year.
The volume of sales in June was also not yet known, but Goodall said it was ‘‘starting to feel like definite levels of normality were beginning to return to the housing market’’.
Banks and real estate agents were seeking property valuations in numbers similar to this time last year, he said.
House prices had been cushioned by Government economic interventions such as the wage subsidy scheme.
Support for house prices also came from banks allowing households to make reduced or nil repayments.
Record low interest rates were another factor, Goodall said.
Despite that, house prices in many centres dropped during June. Auckland’s fell 0.3 per cent, Hamilton’s were down 0.2 per cent, Wellington’s were down 0.5 per cent, and Dunedin’s were down 0.9 per cent.
However, in all those centres prices still ended the month significantly higher than at the end of June last year, QV found.
In Dunedin the average house value at the end of June was 18.9 per cent higher than this time last year, and in Wellington, the average house value was 10.4 per cent higher.
The average house value in Christchurch was $518,639.
Christchurch-based Harcourts Gold co-owner Lynette McFadden said they had a ‘‘strong, vibrant June’’.
There were more buyers than properties and an ‘‘avalanche of interest’’ from first-home buyers, she said.
There had also been multiple bidders in auction rooms. As an example, a Cashmere property with a reserve of $340,000 went for $460,000 after aggressive bidding.
Houses in new subdivisions were ‘‘running hot’’ because they were so appealing to first home buyers. There had also been a lot of interest in units close to the city, with people more accepting of homes without garage space.