The number of property sales across New Zealand rose in January for the first time since June 2016 but people are taking more time to purchase, according to the Real Estate Institute.
A total of 4,366 properties were sold across the country in January, up 2.7 per cent from a year earlier. In Auckland, the number of properties sold increased 0.9 per cent year-on-year to 1,157. Eleven out of 16 regions experienced increases when compared to the same time last year and regions with the biggest increases were Nelson, where 78 properties were sold versus 61 in January last year and Canterbury, where 607 were sold compared to 514.
"January can often be a quiet month for the industry as people spend much of their time at the beach or the bach. However, clearly the warmer weather has helped sales," said REINZ chief executive Bindi Norwell.
The median number of days it took to sell a property - a gauge of underlying demand - increased to 46 from 41 days in January 2017, the highest median number of days it's taken to sell a property since February 2012.
Auctions were used in 6 per cent of all sales across the country in January, the same percentage as January 2017, with 246 properties selling under the hammer.