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‘Wairarapa has just been growing and growing’
GIANINA SCHWANECKE
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Wairarapa properties are “flying off the shelf,” according to new data from realestate.co.nz this month.
The region had a national high 91.2 per cent increase in new listings last month, compared with the same month last year – with 130 properties coming on to the market.
This was also up 85.7 per cent compared with July 2020.
However, as of Monday, when the data was pulled, there were only 128 residential properties available for sale.
Spokeswoman for realestate.co.nz Vanessa Taylor said this showed property coming on to the market was quickly being snapped up.
“If they are selling within two weeks, they will not be counted in the total stock numbers.
“Total stock is the number of residential dwellings that are for sale on the penultimate day of the month.
“What this tells me is that they are flying off the shelf.”
She said it was typical for new listings to decrease during the winter months, but this had not been the case this year.
“It could be that the lockdown in April, when vendors were unable to list their homes, has caused a backlog of properties around the country. But it might also be the result of people’s changing circumstances.”
Wairarapa’s housing stock was down 32.3 per cent compared with August last year, but up about 6.7 per cent compared with July this year.
It remained relatively steady compared with nationwide housing shortages, with nine of 19 regions hitting record stock lows, she said.
Nationally, homes available for sale was down 13.2 per cent on August 2019 to just 17,974 listings – which was a drop of 7.6 per cent compared with the previous month.
The national average asking price was up 21.7 per cent compared with the same time last year and up 9.1 per cent on the previous month.
The data also showed regional New Zealand was driving record house prices with Northland, Bay of Plenty, Taranaki, and the Central North Island reaching all-time highs in August.
Central Otago recorded the highest average asking price at $1,042,267 followed by Auckland at $982,155 and Coromandel at $801,393.
Wairarapa had the 12th highest average asking price at $556,129 but was “basically flat”, Taylor said.
Most of those looking at Wairarapa properties on realestate.co.nz were people aged over the age of 55, followed by those in the 25- to 34-year-old age bracket.
The majority were in Wellington or Auckland, as well as neighbouring regions such as Hawke’s Bay and Manawatu/Whanganui.
Taylor said people spent twice as long looking at Wairarapa properties on the site compared with the national average which showed a strong level of engagement in the Wairarapa property market.
“Wairarapa has just been growing and growing.”
Wairarapa had been “particularly tight on new listings during much of 2019 and 2020”, Taylor said.
“So it is good to see vendors coming to market.”
