January 2015 housing market update
| Time period | Number of sales* | Total value of sales |
|---|---|---|
| January 2015 | 859 properties | $650,537,392 |
| January 2014 | 854 properties | $552,715,378 |
| 12 months to January 2015 | 12,014 properties | $8,678,081,556 |
| 12 months to January 2014 | 13,247 properties | $8,607,629,417 |
*Includes Barfoot & Thompson Auckland residential sales that have gone unconditional. Excludes Northland and commercial sales.
Auckland property holds on to all-time high pre-Christmas values
The Christmas-New Year sales break did nothing to dampen Auckland house prices.
"The average selling price in January was $757,319, only $1572, or 0.2 percent lower than December’s all-time high price," said Peter Thompson, Managing Director of Barfoot & Thompson.
"A drop off in the average price between December and January is normal as the market gradually builds new momentum after the holiday break, but this year properties held on to their high December values.
"There was greater variation in the median price, which at $700,000 for January was down $20,000 or 2.8 percent on that for December, which was an all-time high of $720,000.
"Sales volume at 859 homes in January was in line with the number of sales made in the month of January over the two previous years.
"Based on January’s combination of solid sales numbers with continuing high prices, it suggests market values are likely to continue to hold firm or edge up modestly during the first half of this year.
"New listings at 1199 for the month were slightly down on those in January last year (a decline of 2.4 percent on 2014), but were sufficient to provide some choice for buyers.
"At month end we had 2899 properties for sale on our books, a small but welcome improvement over the 2500 properties for sale at the end of December. It was, however, 14 percent lower than listings at the end of January 2014.
"A quarter of all the homes sold in January were in the under $500,000 price category.
"The number of homes sold in the $1 million plus category continued to increase, with 179 homes, or 21 percent of all homes sold, in this category. In December, the percentage was 17.2 percent and in January 2014 it was 10.7 percent.
"The price segment where property is under the greatest buyer pressure is in the $500,000 to $1 million category. This is where the majority of buyers are looking, and there is a critical shortage of potential properties available."