Median up, but prices in several regions fall
New Zealand’s median house price increased 4.2% to $850,000 in the year to June, but some regions fared much better than others, Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (Reinz) figures show.
The median residential property price for the country, excluding Auckland, increased 9% from $680,000 in June last year to $741,000 in June, the seasonally adjusted figures show.
There was a month-on-month increase from May to June of 1.1%, Reinz said.
Reinz House Price Index (HPI) data, which is considered a more accurate reflection of house prices, shows that national prices are up 0.7% year-on-year but down 5.4% in the last three months.
In Auckland, median house prices increased just 0.5% compared to June last year, with the median price now sitting at $1.16m. Auckland also recorded a month-on-month increase of 2.8% from May to June.
Canterbury was the region with the strongest annual percentage growth in June, with its median price increasing 22.1% in the year to June from $565,000 to $690,000.
Four regions showed an annual decrease in median price. Wellington fell 4.2%, Hawke’s Bay dropped 1.4%, Manawatū / Whanganui fell 1.1%, and Taranaki fell 0.2%.
Across New Zealand, the number of residential property sales decreased by 38.1% to 4721 in the year to June. Month-on-month, sales decreased 17.3%.
Reinz chief executive Jen Baird said that while sales activity was still below what was expected, the annual house price performance was marginally better than expected. ‘‘We’re seeing volatility across the country as the market seeks equilibrium at a more moderate pace.’’
The 4721 sales were the lowest for a June month since 2010.