"There has been a definite increase in value and people are appreciating presentation more so, and that might be due to the fact that people are upgrading their homes, so they are not selling the exact same home they saw presented say six months previously. They are making improvements and getting the benefit of that. We haven’t seen that in a while.
“There is definitely a lift but it’s still about supply and demand, and the type of properties presented.”
Ms Rareti said compared to the previous year, people were now more confident that it was worth making improvements to properties.
“There is definitely a buzz in the market.”
Yesterday’s QV House Price Index figures revealed the biggest regional rise was recorded in Kawerau, where values rose 60.2 percent over the course of the year.
Elsewhere, Wairoa recorded an 11 percent rise, while values in both Napier and Hastings rose by at least 20 percent.
QV national spokeswoman Andrea Rush said when adjusted for inflation the nationwide annual increase dropped slightly to 12.2 percent and the average value nationwide was $627,905.
“December saw a continuation of the trend of a slowing rate of value growth, activity and demand. This trend has been seen in many of the main centres since the introduction of the LVRs (loan to value ratio), which require a minimum 40 percent deposit for investment properties.
“This, coupled with the annual Christmas holiday period slow-down, has led to a decrease in values in some parts of Auckland, Hamilton and Christchurch since November.
“However, in Wellington values continue to rise faster than in Auckland but at a slightly slower rate than prior to the LVRs being introduced.”
