Winter bites: NZ house values fall as agents keep sellers' expectations in check

QV's latest house value data is out. Photo/Chris Loufte

Winter seems to have put a freeze on New Zealand home values with a dip in national prices coming after years of growth.

New Quotable Value data showed national home values dropped 0.3 per cent in the last three months, while the number of homes being listed for sale was also down, according to realestate.co.nz.

The market plateau had forced some real estate agents to gently massage the expectations of owners intent on making a tidy profit from the sale of their homes, QV general manager, David Nagel says.

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"After a sustained period of national value growth, sellers can sometimes have an inflated – even unrealistic - view of the value of their property," he said.

"This is resulting in slower than usual average time to sell properties across some areas."

Further signs of a national slowdown came from realestate.co.nz figures yesterday showing new property listings fell in 15 of the 19 regions in June, resulting in a 9.9 per cent drop compared to June last year.

Gisborne property listings were down 41.4 per cent, West Coast listings 25.8 per cent and the Wairarapa region down 27 per cent were the worst affected.

Yet despite last quarter's slowdown, national prices still jumped 5.7 per cent when compared to June last year to hit an average value of $675,680, according to QV.

In the Auckland region, home values climbed 0.8 per cent year-on-year, but fell 0.2 per cent in the last quarter from April 1 till June 30.

The average value for the region is now $1,053,575.

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QV Auckland senior consultant James Steele said it was no surprise values had remained flat because tougher lending restrictions and new Government regulations had dampened investor demand.

"We're continuing to see a high proportion of properties come to market as price by negotiation as opposed to auction," he said.

"With less demand, sellers are adjusting expectations and are more open to negotiation in order to get their property sold."

Tauranga home values, meanwhile, rose 1.9 per cent in the year to June 30 but dropped 0.9 per cent in the last quarter.

Wellington values rose 4.8 per cent annually but dropped 0.8 per cent in the last three months, while Christchurch prices rose 0.1 per cent in the last quarter.

Napier values rose 15.7 per cent year on year and 3 per cent in the past three months but price hopes there have been unrealistic according to QV's property consultant in that area, Nicola Waldon.

"We're seeing many properties being re-listed with asking prices or specifying a minimum price offer," she said.

"Our data supports this, with the average time taken to sell increasing compared to recent years."

The average asking price for a New Zealand home on realestate.co.nz was $646,231 in June, slightly down on the QV value.

It also was a 0.3 per cent drop on asking prices from May, realestate.co.nz spokeswoman Vanessa Taylor said.

June asking prices in Auckland, meanwhile, fell 2.4 per cent compared to May to hit $931,339.

Taylor said it was notable how Queenstown-led asking prices in the Central Otago-Lakes region were now close to Auckland's, jumping 3.7 per cent in June to just over $900,000.

Among the regions, Taranaki was the star performer as asking prices jumped 13.1 per cent last month to hit $455,636.