The Level 4 lockdown is already having ripple effects when it comes to real estate.
The industry has effectively ground to a halt, with buyers, sellers and renters unable to view, move, or complete final settlements.
For people like New Plymouth’s Grant Cannell, it has meant several weeks in limbo.
“It’s been a learning curve in patience,” he told 1 NEWS.
Mr Cannell and his wife sold their house before the lockdown, and were meant to be moving out in April to a rental property which was being vacated.
Now, the current tenants in the rental are stuck too, meaning the Cannells have nowhere to go once they finally move out in less than two weeks time.
And while Mr Cannell says they are “ecstatic” they can finally get going, they may now have to see if they have friends who can house them for a couple of weeks.
They are not alone, with Ray White Real Estate agent Tom Rawson saying they are expecting a surge in sales when restrictions are lifted slightly next week.
“Those that've sold prior to lockdown that hadn’t bought, they’ve been looking and they need to go purchase something before they're homeless,” he says.
“So we'll have a bit of a surge over the first few weeks.”
Under Level 3, private viewing will be allowed under certain safety guidelines, including limiting the amount of viewings in one day.
“There'll be really strict criteria around this because it’s so important that we maintain utmost safety for people involved,” says the Real Estate Institute’s Bindi Norwell.
Mr Rawson says they are looking at a number of details, including how to make sure there is minimal touching, disinfecting surfaces, and even screening prospective buyers.
“We want to make sure people aren’t just tyre kicking,” he says.
“In some instances we're going to have families leaving their safe environment and having to wander off down the road a little bit, we want to make sure we're not doing that unnecessarily.”
Another industry learning to adapt, as Level 3 looms.
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