First National principal and Rotorua REINZ spokeswoman Ann Crossley said the company was following all guidelines regarding Covid-19.
"This is a rapidly evolving situation. We will be taking extra precaution with our vulnerable clients. We will be asking people to disqualify themselves if they are unwell.
"We will make decisions as and when they need to be made and precautions ... but we don't want to be doom and gloom. We need to be practical and sensible."
Bayleys and Eves Realty Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Taranaki chief executive, Heath Young. Photo / File
Bayleys and Eves Realty Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Taranaki chief executive, Heath Young, said it was too early to understand the full impact of Covid-19 on property prices.
"We are still seeing good volumes of deals transacting over the past two weeks with excellent prices being achieved," he said.
"Looking ahead, we expect to see prices stabilise and come back off recent gains as some of the uncertainty around Covid-19 plays out."
Real Estate Institute of New Zealand chief executive Bindi Norwell said it was business as usual, as much as possible, in the Bay's housing market despite obvious concerns around Covid-19 and what its effects might be.
Real Estate Institute of New Zealand chief executive Bindi Norwell. Photo / File
Auctions were continuing as normal with plenty of interest from buyers, Norwell said, but some agents had experienced a slight dip in the number of people attending open homes.
Norwell said REINZ was waiting for Government advice regarding events such as open homes, auctions and rental viewings.
"We are also recommending the real estate profession look to technology solutions such as the use of online/phone bidding at auctions or virtual reality tours for open homes and rental viewings."
Norwell said the biggest concern was the community fear around job security and whether banks will continue lending in light of Covid-19.
"The concern around jobs is particularly prevalent in Rotorua with tourism and forestry being big employers in the region, however, there is some hope that local tourism levels will help to fill the gap like happened during the Global Financial Crisis."
OneRoof editor Owen Vaughan. Photo / File
OneRoof editor Owen Vaughan said people still needed to buy and sell property despite the period of uncertainty for the housing market.
"While there may be a flattening as a result of uncertainty in the economy, there is nothing that suggests there is going to be a market crash or people should stop looking to property as an investment."
Rotorua Property Investors Association president Debbie Van Den Broek said the company had taken some precautions against the spread of Covid-19.
"We have sent texts to all of our tenants to say if they are affected let us know, so we can help them manage rent payments if they lose their jobs," she said.
"As a property manager, we have suspended all property inspections until the end of April so we are not transmitting or picking up [the virus].
"It is just about keeping that social distance."
However, Van Den Broek predicted the panic would be all over in a year's time.
"In the long term, everything will be fine. We have just got to get through this blip. Fortunately, it happened towards the end of the tourist season," she said.
"Rotorua is still a popular place to be ... This will make our property prices even more desirable for people from overseas."
Veros Property Services Rotorua regional manager Paul Spurdle said Covid-19 was undoubtedly going to have an impact on the city's property market.
But he said nobody knew how big that impact would be.
Spurdle said lending was still strong and so was supply and demand but the virus was creating economic uncertainty.
"For Rotorua, tourism was a massive employer. If people lose their jobs, there is going to be uncertainty in the market as to how long there is a downturn."
He also expected to see less stock to the market.
Spurdle said it would also be interesting to see what happened to the high number of short-term Airbnb properties in Rotorua.
"We may see these properties return to the more traditional residential rental market in the short to medium term which is a good thing for local residents as the local rental market has been tight for some time."
