Source: MIL-OSI Submissions
Source: CoreLogic
The most recent shift back up the alert levels in mid-August caused appraisals generated by real estate agents to drop again (albeit by much less than during April’s lockdown), with the flow of new weekly listings subsequently also staying muted. To be fair, appraisals activity has now begun to rise again and of course we’re also poised to see the usual Spring lift for market activity. However, given the tight starting point for listings/available properties on the market, it wouldn’t be a surprise if would-be buyers continue to find only a limited selection over the next few months.
A prominent issue in the NZ residential property market for at least the last 12-18 months has been the lack of available listings, and hence the restricted choice for buyers – in turn, this has been a factor in property values largely shrugging off the effects of COVID-19 and the recession to date (except for in certain locations, such as Queenstown).
Indeed, we entered the initial lockdown in April with a low stock of existing listings on the market, and the subsequent sharp drop in appraisals generated by estate agents then flowed through to a fresh decline in new listings coming to market. The most recent move back up the alert levels in mid-August also saw appraisals decline, although they have at least begun to gradually rise again in the past week or so.
