Investors return
Anew nationwide survey shows investors are returning to the property market, but the Real Estate Institute does not believe the landlords are back in great numbers.
The monthly survey by the BNZ bank and the Real Estate Institute showed more real estate agents were seeing a rise in the number of investors in the market.
The survey also showed a lot of agents had noticed more firsthome buyers entering themarket.
REINZ chief executive Helen O’Sullivan said property investors were still a very small segment of buyers overall, but there was distinctly more interest in Christchurch and Auckland, where rental demand was strong.
‘‘When you combine low longterm interest rates with the good prospects of strong rental income, it starts to look attractive.’’
BNZ chief economist Tony Alexander said that low returns from term deposits were making investors look for alternatives.
Commenting on the survey, he noted that agents felt buyers were now more motivated than sellers.
‘‘For the first time since our survey started, we feel one can say with strong confidence that the New Zealand market has shifted toward being a seller’s market rather than the buyer’s market which has been more the norm for the past four years.’’
O’Sullivan did not believe it was a seller’s market across the board, but felt it was certainly the case where housing supply or listings were low.
‘‘There is also anecdotal feedback from members that there’s a little bit of a two-step market in some parts of the country, in that, under a certain price bracket, there’s a lot of competition from buyers.’’
Property Investors Federation president Andrew King said returns on rental property were not great but were the best in a few years.
He did not expect a flood of investors but ‘‘everything is pointing in the right direction’’.
‘‘There’s still a shortage of new properties being built.
‘‘There’s a shortage of rental properties, rents are going up, prices in some areas are going up . . . and interest rates are really low. So there are good reasons for it.’’