Cautious buyers mean record real estate listings in NP
The number of real estate listings in New Plymouth is the highest it’s been in nearly a decade, real estate agents say.
On Thursday, there were 658 listings across the New Plymouth District.
The median number of days for a property to sell had also risen to 55 days, Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) figures show.
Last week, New Zealand economist Tony Alexander was reported as saying it was because people weren’t buying like they used to.
“Buyers do not have a sense of urgency, and do not feel the need to get out there and buy, so there has been a pull back from the market.”
People were likely to be holding back to see if their industry, or job, is negatively affected by the economic environment before they think about buying property, he said.
But a survey showed a net 39% of agents reported they were seeing more people wanting to get their properties appraised for potential sale.
Alexander said sellers had come forward more strongly than he anticipated since the upturn in the market in the middle to late part of last year, and that had led to a 21% increase in new listings.
The near two-month median to sell a home in New Plymouth was in stark contrast to the peak of the market post-covid in 2021. Then the median number of days to sell in New Plymouth was about 22 days and houses routinely sold for more than 50% of their government valuations.
Darrell Patterson, of Move, said New Plymouth’s listings usually sat around 550.
“This is the most listings we’ve had in probably nine years,” he said.
“What it means is our buyers have choices.”
Patterson wouldn’t classify it a buyer’s or seller’s market. He didn’t like using such terms, he said, as everyone had different circumstances.
He said despite the high number of properties available, they were still selling for reasonable prices.
Properties in good condition with great kitchens and bathroom were selling between 1% and 6% above government valuation, which was a figure used to help calculate property rates and should not be taken as gospel, he said.
Those that were worn and tired were selling between 2% and 6% below GV.
“But there’s always the exception that may sell for 20% above or below GV.”
He said he hadn’t seen prices plummet, with the median price in New Plymouth sitting at $700,000 according to REINZ, and the reasons people were selling remained the same – divorce, death, design, debt, or disaster.