Auckland property values grow nearly two per cent in last three months, new figures reveal

January 8, 2020
Houses in Auckland (file picture).

The national average property market value continues to grow, Auckland values up 1.9 percent in the last quarter.

In December last year the average property value in Auckland was $1.047 million - slightly down from $1.048 in 2018.

However, prices were up 1.9 per cent over the past three months, the strongest rise since November 2016.

CoreLogic head of research Nick Goodall said the price leap helped wipe out losses experienced during a sluggish start to 2019.

According to the CoreLogic QV December 2019 House Price Index, property values rose by 0.9 per cent over the month, with the annual rate of growth increasing to four per cent. That’s up from the two per cent lull in June 2019, and the strongest annual growth figure since September 2017 (five per cent). 

Statistics show the quarterly rate of growth for the last three months of 2019 was 2.7 per cent, which was the largest quarterly increase since November 2016 when it was 3.9 per cent.

CoreLogic head of research Nick Goodall said, "the end of 2019 saw a couple of high profile releases (bank capital requirements and LVR rules) from the Reserve Bank and ultimately they took a conservative stance with each of them.

Data shows house prices fell in Auckland by nearly two per cent compared to February.

"The resurgence in property value growth in the second half of the year, in conjunction with a lift in investor activity and lending, was enough to see the RBNZ take a ‘wait and see’ approach to making any changes which could accelerate further growth (and reduce financial stability). With this most recent data now available it appears that was a wise decision."

Wellington finished the year strongly, with 4.4 per cent growth to close out the final quarter.

As was the case throughout last year, the outer cities of Porirua and Lower and Upper Hutt experienced greater growth than Wellington City, however values in the capital also took off after a lull for much of the middle part of the year – values increased 3.5 per cent in the final quarter of 2019.

Dunedin's prices rose 18 per cent over the past year.

Mr Goodall said there weren't too many surprises in the data though.

"While we've seen a resurgence in property values in our larger centres, we are starting to see a slowdown in some provincial cities as recent rates of growth can’t be sustained with consistent demand.

"First home buyers remain active, and there has been a reemergence of property investors, as their confidence in the market returns, however in some smaller areas the perception of value is starting to wane."

SHARE ME

More Stories