Buyers’ market on the way?
An increase in new year property listings in Waikato may show the tide is finally turning towards buyers in the region, website Realestate.co.nz says.
But Hamilton real estate leaders are not so sure, saying a persistent shortage of housing stock means the market will continue to be a sellers’ game while prices continue to rise.
A Realestate.co.nz report released this morning shows 544 homes were newly listed in Waikato in January, an increase of 4.2 per cent on January 2019.
But Harcourts Hamilton general manager Brian King said Waikato would have to see a ‘‘dramatic increase’’ in listings to start to favour buyers.
‘‘We are talking at least a 20 per cent increase in listings to make any kind of difference.’’
An influx of houses being put up for sale in Hamilton city came in late January, King said, after a hard November-December and slow early January.
‘‘From what the agents are saying, we have got more stock coming on in the next few weeks as schools go back and people are looking to make the shifts they have talked about over the Christmas period.’’
But the sellers’ market would continue as a lack of stock persisted across all price ranges in the city.
‘‘It is a good time for the market as people rush to buy and sell.’’
But Realestate.co.nz spokeswoman Vanessa Taylor said it was exciting to see fresh houses on the Waikato market amid a period of low stock.
‘‘I hope we will see a shift to a buyers’ market.
‘‘We have seen listings down year on year, there has not been a lot of stimulation in the market; 4.2 per cent is a sizeable increase compared with last January.’’
The increase in listings was being seen in Waikato, Central North Island, Manawatu¯ Whanganui and Hawke’s Bay regions, Taylor said.
People might be listing holiday properties on the market or might be anticipating more appetite for homes in these regions, Taylor said.
But the total housing stock for sale in Waikato, and across the country, has decreased from 2019.
At January 2020, 1433 houses were listed for sale in Waikato with realestate.co.nz, a 16.6 per cent decrease from 2019.
Property seekers were having to snap up property whether it had been on the market for months or had just been listed, Taylor said.
She said it was too soon to tell whether January’s listing increase signalled a major market shift. ‘‘We need another couple of months under our belt to see whether this is a trend.’’
Lodge Real Estate managing director Jeremy O’Rourke said underlying pressure on house prices would continue into this year. A 4 per cent increase in listings within a very understocked market was not going to make a difference for buyers, he said.
Hamilton’s median house price climbed 10.9 per cent from 2018 to 2019, reaching $620,000 in November and December 2019.
O’Rourke expected the median
‘‘It is a good time for the market as people rush to buy and sell.’’
Brian King
Harcourts Hamilton
price to drift above $620,000 over the next few months.
‘‘Multiple offers on properties are an everyday occurrence,’’ O’Rourke said.
Lugtons managing director Simon Lugton agreed.
‘‘We are quite a long way away from a buyers’ market, it is definitely still a sellers’ market.’’
He imagined it would take another year for the market to become more balanced.
‘‘We do have an election coming up this year, and traditionally the market responds post-election. I think prices are going to continue to rise, there will come a point when prices rise to a point where people are not rushing to buy but that is not happening yet.’’
Towns around Hamilton were also showing signs of popularity, with increasing interest in more affordable housing in Ngā ruawā hia, Te Awamutu and Morrinsville, Lugton said.