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Wellington Sees Modest Price Increases - 14 May 2013

Mon, 13 May 2013 17:48:00 -0500

Wellington Sees Modest Price Increase - House prices in Wellington rose just 2.0% in the last year, compared with rises of 12.0% in Auckland and 9.4% in Christchurch**. Real estate has no recommended retail price and for Wellington sellers, the single biggest influence on their price is the approach taken (or not) to prepare, present, promote and price the property and who they work with. We are delighted with our client's results and success stories - the last 14 client sales this year averaging a sale price 10.0% above RV.

Steve Welsby and Leonie Snook - Top Wellington Real Estate Agents 2013

NZ Housing Shortage Worsens - May 14th 2013

Mon, 13 May 2013 17:45:00 -0500

NZ Housing Shortage Worsens - Building consents for new homes are rising, but not nearly enough. In the year to March annual building consents rose 18.9% to 17,397, still well below the average of 22,000 for the last 10 years*...so the housing shortage worsens as time goes by. The upshot, as textbook Economics 101 would predict, particularly in Auckland and Christchurch, is price rises. This fundamental continues to underpin why property is a good long term investment, and for buyers gives good reason to get into the market now rather than putting it off for a few years.

Steve Welsby and Leonie Snook - Top Agents Wellington City and Suburbs 2013

Housing Supply Shortage - April 8 2013

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 14:11:00 -0500

Housing supply shortage - Good to see housing consents are rising but it's off a low base leaving New Zealand in a position of housing shortage, in particular Auckland and Christchurch. The 12 month total number of consents issued for new houses now stands at 17,432 from a multi-decade low of 13,269 in July 2011. This is below the ten year average of 22,200 and means that still as each month goes by the housing shortage in New Zealand gets worse rather than better***. It remains a great time to buy property whether as a home or investment.

* Real Estate Institute of New Zealand
** NZ Property Report (realestate.co.nz).
*** BNZ Weekly Overview

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsby - Wellington Real Estate 2013

Your Price Could be Up To You! 27 March 2013

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 20:33:00 -0500

Price is Down (or Up :-)) to What YOU Do - The Wellington market is more active, ticking over on a trend of increased sales activity helped by low interest rates, but prices remain generally flat - just 1.7% growth****. BUT, sellers preparing their properties well and utilising best practice real estate are getting very different results. So far this year, 89% of our client's sales were over their RV with the sale price they achieved on average 7% above RV. It always pays dividends to work with top agents applying top real estate practices and on results is always cheaper. If you are thinking of making a move in coming months, drop us an e-mail to find out what your home may be worth and what you can do to prepare for the best results possible (email us here).

* Statistics New Zealand
** Real Estate Institute of New Zealand - Market Trends
*** NZ Property Report - March 2013
**** Quotable Value House Price Index

Listing Supply is Constraining Property Sales - 27 March 2013

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 20:33:00 -0500

Listing Supply Constraining Property Sales - Home sales in Wellington are up following normal seasonal trend, though for January and February were up 23.9% and 11.7% respectively on last year** showing a continuing trend of a more active market. New listings in the same two months haven't kept pace with growth of 14.2% and -2.4% respectively, compared to last year***. The upshot is that the market is now leaning towards sellers and properties are continuing to sell more quickly than for the same period last year. For buyers, this market is more competitive so doing the homework upfront and putting in solid offers that are as clean as possible is key. Sellers, there is strong demand in the market right now and we have a lot of buyers still waiting to buy. If you want to be sold before winter give us a call (027 518 0008).

* Statistics New Zealand
** Real Estate Institute of New Zealand - Market Trends
*** NZ Property Report - March 2013
**** Quotable Value House Price Index

Steve Welsby and Leonie Snook - Top Harcourts Agents 2013

Economy is Stronger than Expected - 27 March 2013

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 20:33:00 -0500

Economy Stronger Than Expected - Statistics NZ figures just out show the economy grew by 1.5% in the December quarter, the strongest quarterly growth since December 2009. 15 of the 16 industries tracked showed an increase this quarter reflecting a broad recovery. Annual growth for the year to December 2012 was 2.5%*. Modest but positive!

Steve Welsby and Leonie Snook - Top Harcourts Agents Wellington 2013

* Statistics New Zealand

New Home Consents Hit a High - 5 March 2013

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 22:37:00 -0600

Statistics NZ figures show that the number of new houses consented has risen by 50% since March 2011, with shortages being most severe in Auckland and Canterbury. Consents haven't been as high since 2008, with record low interest rates, a catch-up in meeting population demand from under-building and of-course Canterbury rebuild driving activity.

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsby, Top Wellington Real Estate Agents 2013

Wellington Property - Tips on Buying 5 March 2013

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 22:36:00 -0600

The current market has strong levels of demand and while listings have risen, as seasonally expected at this time of year, the growth in listings is not matching the growth in buyer demand...so the market is tighter. What does this mean? Buyers aware of this need to be savvy and do as much as they can to stack the odds in their favour. Getting as close to cash offers as possible is important as is homework on recent sales to make a competitive offer. For helpful tips on buying see our website LeonieAndSteve.com or give us a call (LeonieAndSteve.com). Sellers, buyers are still cautious and choosy and so presenting and marketing a home to its best potential are criticaleven in this market to create the demand. For professional advice call us anytime, we always love to talk property (027 518 0008).

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsby - Top Wellington Real Estate Agents 2013

Wellington Property - Shortage Of Listings 5 March 2013

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 22:34:00 -0600

At the coal face there's strong demand for well-presented and located property - this month saw our second highest first open attendance with 34 groups through a new listing (a number of other properties also had attendances in the mid-20's). One of two properties we sold this week also had a total of 9 offers. The common thread? (1) Sellers preparing their homes incredibly well (Read 'doing the right things right'), and (2) Strategic Marketing and other Buyer Matching Systems available to our clients to get higher numbers of suitable buyers into their homes. If you (or someone you know) are thinking of selling, book in now for a no-obligation and quick chat to find out how to get the best results possible.

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsby, Top Wellington Real Estate Agents 2013

More Properties are Coming to Market (1 Feb 2013)

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 19:08:00 -0600

A number of buyers we've spoken to are saying they are ready to buy now but there is not enough to look at. The good news is more properties are now coming onto the market...and the property books are getting fatter J. Official figures are not out yet but at the coalface it still looks like there is a relative shortage of stock compared with demand. We've listed 11 new properties since mid-January and don't see this slowing down...most of our business coming from word of mouth, so THANK YOU to all our loyal clients and supporters. There are still a few slots still left so if you are thinking of making a move in coming months let us know and we will hold one for you (LeonieAndSteve@Harcourts.co.nz).

Leonie Snook And Steve Welsby - Top Wellington Agents 2013

Interest Rates Held and Construction on the Rise (1 Feb 2013)

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 17:36:00 -0600

Interest Rates Held - As widely expected the Reserve Bank held the official cash rate unchanged at 2.5% today. The low interest rate environment is helping both buyers and market buoyancy. Interesting to note that household borrowing rose 1.2% in the December quarter, the strongest quarterly rise since mid-2008. Net mortgage debt in December was up 3.7% from a year before so people are taking action and this is reflected in a sharp increase in property transactions in the last quarter of 2012.

Construction On The Rise - The property market (like any other) is subject to the forces of Demand and Supply...good old economics 101 J. On the supply side, great to see construction improving with consents for building new housing rising in seasonally adjusted terms by 9.4% in December to be ahead 3.4% for the quarter*. However, this is coming off a very low base and, as has been the case for a long while, NZ has an underlying shortage of housing. On the demand side, low interest rates, a catch-up in buying demand, and a net migration trend set to turn more positive all bode well for a property market in recovery.

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsby - Top Harcourts Wellington Agents 2013

More Demand for Property - 12 December 2012

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 19:12:00 -0600

The trend of higher property demand has continued with a strong finish to the year in Wellington. Figures just out show 873 homes sold in Wellington in November, up 19.8% up on October (729 sales) and up 32.9% on November last year (657 sales). December has seen a flurry of activity at the coal-face before the market goes into a traditional quiet time from now until mid-January. However, given the current trend look out for a strong summer ahead! We're working with clients now to prepare their properties for the new year and slots are filling up fast. We have just a few spots left so if you are thinking of making a move in the new year let us know now and we will hold a spot for you (LeonieAndSteve@harcourts.co.nz).

Houses Selling Faster - 13 December 2012

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 19:12:00 -0600

A more active market with demand ahead of new listings is seeing houses sell faster, and in particular very good demand levels for well prepared, presented and marketed properties. The median days to sell in Wellington was 30 days in November. This is unchanged from October and 4 days less than November last year. Our own median days to sell is just 22 days.

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsby, Number One Harcourts Agents Wellington

Prices Are Stable - 14 December 2012

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 19:12:00 -0600

House values in Wellington are pretty stable. There are though some fantastic prices being achieved which are down to sellers having the right advice, doing the right things and working with top agents. We sold 4 properties in November with sale price averaging 9% above RV. To find out how and set yourself up for success in the new year give us a call (027 518 0008).

Steve Welsby and Leonie Snook, Top Wellington Real Estate Agents

Housing Construction Rising 11 December 2012

Sun, 09 Dec 2012 15:09:00 -0600

Great to see figures showing that building consents are up 20% nationally on where they were a year ago. However, when you consider this is still 27% below the 10 year average level**** it's clear that construction is rising slowly and off a low base. Going in the right direction though!

**** BNZ Weekly Overview - 6 December 2012

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsby, Top Harcourts Real Estate Agents, Wellington

New Listings Are Tight - 10 December 2012

Sun, 09 Dec 2012 15:08:00 -0600

1,154 new listings came onto the Wellington market in November, 2% less than in November last year. This would be fine if sales were flat, but they are not! From January to November (11 months), new listings increased just 4.8%* while the volume of sales (READ demand) increased by 14%**. Demand for property is up and strong - we have sold (or achieved contracts on) 15 homes in the last 9 weeks...yes that's a lot of happy clients J. The trend of increased buyer demand is expected to continue through into the new year, and sellers have a great opportunity to capitalise in THIS MARKET if they do the RIGHT things. If you or someone you know is thinking of moving get in touch early for an opinion and the right professional advice (leonie@LeonieAndSteve.com).

* NZ Property Report - 1 December 2012, realestate.co.nz
** Real Estate Institute of New Zealand, Market Trends - November 2012

Steve Welsby and Leonie Snook, Top Real Estate Agents Wellington

Wellington is a SELLERS Market! 10 December 2012

Sun, 09 Dec 2012 15:08:00 -0600

With demand for property out-pacing supply, the stock of houses on the Wellington market has dropped sharply. In November there was just 17.5 weeks of housing stock on the Wellington market, 21% less than in November last year and below the long term average level of 22 weeks***. With the inventory on market running below long term average Wellington is now officially a sellers market. Buyers, with more competition for quality property it's even more important to get checks and homework out the way early and put forward clean and competitive offers with as few conditions as possible. For tips on smart buying and an Exclusive Buyers Guide see our website www.LeonieAndSteve.com.

*** NZ Property Report - 1 December 2012, realestate.co.nz = Equivalent weeks of sale being the number of weeks it would take at the current rate of sale to clear all of the stock currently on market

Steve Welsby and Leonie Snook, Top Harcourts Agents Wellington

Prices Holding 14 Nov 2012

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 17:36:00 -0600

House prices in Wellington are up 2.4% on last year, and have moved just slightly in each of the last two months. In THIS market, the greatest value for sellers comes NOT from the market delivering growth but from whether or not they do the RIGHT THINGS to achieve the true value of their home's potential. Our 9 client sales above achieved an average percentage above RV of 8.3%. Want to know how? Give us a call (027 518 0008).

Wellington Market More Balanced 14 Nov 2012

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 17:36:00 -0600

The recent surge in new listings has brought more balance into the Wellington market. A total of 22 weeks of housing stock is now on the market which equates to the Long Term Average (LTA) level. A lot less stock on market than LTA would signal a seller's market (as in Auckland and Christchurch right now) while a lot more stock on market than LTA would signal a buyer's market...so we are pretty balanced. Competition is still very strong though for well located, presented and marketed properties - a property we sold this month had 6 offers.

The Market is Tightening! Wellington 8 April 2013

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 17:35:00 -0600

Market Tightening - Demand for property in Wellington has continued to trend above last yea, the volume of sales up 16.5% for the first two months of 2013 compared to 2012*. New listings have also risen, as is seasonally expected, but have not kept pace with an increase of just 3.8% over the same time**. This has kept the market tight and tilted in favour of sellers, with properties selling more quickly. Demand has been active and we have sold or achieved contracts on 10 properties in the last 11 weeks. A client's property under contract this week had over 90 groups through in 3 weeks. While official figures are not out yet for March it's been another strong sales month at the coalface, which will show through. With demand up, we have a lot of buyers still waiting to find something. If you are thinking of making a move give us a call (027 518 0008).

Leonie Snook and Steve Welsny - Top Wellington Real Estate Agents 2013