Auckland home sales rise in June as prices dip

Friday 3rd July 2009

Auckland home sales extended their gains last month, suggesting confidence in the sector is beginning to stabilise, according to real estate firm Barfoot & Thompson (B&T).

The volume of sales in June from May rose 5.8% to 861 properties, Barfoot said in a statement. Sales jumped 55% from the same month of 2008. The average price slipped 2.3% to $521,791.

“The strength of the Auckland housing market can be added to the list of ‘green shoots’ indicating that the economy in general and people’s confidence is starting to stabilise,” said Peter Thompson, the firm’s managing director.

“It’s hard to dismiss the robust sales of recent months as a temporary reprieve in the ongoing decline of housing values.”

Government figures this week showed home building approvals rose for a second month in May, driven by a pick-up in consents for apartments, adding to optimism demand may revive in the property market in the face of the central bank’s record low benchmark interest rate and a pick-up in net migration. Excluding apartments, though, consents fell 3.1%.

Figures last week showed net migration rose to its highest in almost six years in May, with a seasonally adjusted net 2,690 arrivals.

Thompson said his firm’s biggest challenge is attracting new listing, with total listing at the end of June falling to a 20-month low of 5,557.

The real estate company let 735 rental properties last month, a record for June, with the average rental at $388 a week, up from $379 a week in May.

Businesswire.co.nz

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