Hawke's Bay housing supply lowest in country

Median house prices in Hastings rose 17 per cent in the year to May, but fell 6 per cent in the month to May. Photo/Duncan Brown

With only eight weeks of supply remaining Hawke's Bay has the lowest level of housing inventory in the country, real estate figures show.

But industry leaders say the region's property market shows no signs of slowing.

Yesterday the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) released its latest data, which showed national median house prices had risen 6.7 per cent to $540,000 in the year to last month.

This was said to have been led by strong regional growth, with Hawke's Bay median prices
rising $52,000, or 16 per cent compared with May last year.

Prices rose 33 per cent in Wairoa, 17 per cent in Hastings, and 13 per cent in Napier.

However, sales volumes fell by 13 per cent in the year to May, with Hawke's Bay now having the lowest level of inventory across New Zealand with just two months of supply.

REINZ chief executive Bindi Norwell said continual tight inventory across the region was restricting vendors from selling, for fear of not being able to buy replacement properties.

"The number of properties for sale across the region has fallen by more than 150 compared to May 2016 and the level of supply is the lowest in the country," she said.

"Out-of-town and cash buyers are being successful while first-home buyers and investors struggle with changes in industry criteria."

But local real estate leaders are saying that although supply is more limited than in the past, the demand is still there.

Tremains managing director Simon Tremain said he was "pretty disappointed" with the lower volume of sales.

However, he said, Hawke's Bay's market was still buoyant, with lots of properties still being listed.

"There's definitely no slow-down in demand," he said. "Buyers are out there and are getting good prices."

Ray White managing director Elanor MacDonald said interest was still high with "unprecedented numbers going through open homes and properties".

Some were being visited by more than 50 groups - something she had not seen since 2003 - and interested buyers were a mixture of out-of-towners, first-home buyers and local residents.

"There's just a lot of them, and we haven't got enough properties."

Unlike in Auckland, where sale prices "went through the roof" due to limited supply, buyers were still taking a "measured approach" when purchasing property, she said.

REINZ reported that compared with April, last month Hawke's Bay's median price fell $12,500, or 3 per cent. Prices were steady in Napier, but fell 6 per cent in Hastings and 10 per cent in Central Hawke's Bay.

On a seasonally adjusted basis the median rose 2 per cent compared with April, indicating the fall in prices was less than expected.

In the year to May 2017 sales volumes fell by 6 per cent in Napier, 16 per cent in Hastings and 30 per cent in Central Hawke's Bay.

On a seasonally adjusted basis sales for May fell 13 per cent compared with April, "indicating the lift in sales was far weaker than expected for May".

The median number of days to sell improved by two days compared with April, to 30 days in May. The number of days to sell eased by one day compared with May last year.