Source: Cotality
New Zealand’s property market continues to stabilise, with sales volumes trending upwards, property values relatively flat, and first home buyers maintaining strong shares of activity in September, according to Cotality’s October Housing Chart Pack.
After a small dip in August, sale volumes rose again in September, almost 4% higher than the same period last year. This marks the 27th rise in the past 29 months since the downturn of 2022-early 2023.
New listings have also started to rise with the spring season, but stock levels remain around 12% lower than this time last year.
Despite rising sales activity, property values remain subdued overall across the country, even falling a touch further in Auckland and Wellington over the past month.
Cotality Chief Property Economist Kelvin Davidson said while we’re not seeing a broad-based upswing in values, the market appears to be stabilising with conditions still tilted in favour of buyers.
“For now, property buyers are enjoying conditions. In particular, first home buyers are showing strong momentum with around 28% of activity in September, setting a new monthly record.”
“And with the LVR rules set to loosen from 1 December, there may be further opportunity for them to take advantage.”
“But it’s also worth noting that they’re already strong, even though the overall share of owner-occupier lending being done at low deposit remains well below the current, lower speed limits. In other words, even the current LVRs aren’t really binding.”
Mr Davidson noted, however, that the picture is different for investors as they face tighter restraints around low-deposit lending.
“For investors, it’s currently much more difficult to secure low deposit finance.”
“Even so, other credit restraints are still in place, such as the debt-to-income ratio limits and banks’ own internal serviceability tests. Hence, although they’re already on the comeback trail, a fresh surge in investor activity off the back of looser LVRs seems unlikely.”
“All in all, the property market is largely tracking sideways for now – neither booming nor falling sharply.”
“With affordability improving slightly, listings lower than last year, more existing borrowers repricing loans down to market interest rates, and the unemployment rate set to drop next year, 2026 may look stronger for both property sales volumes and values,” he concluded.
Highlights from the October 2025 Housing Chart Pack include:
New Zealand’s residential real estate market is worth a combined $1.65 trillion.
The Cotality Home Value Index shows property values across New Zealand edged up +0.1% in September. Over the three months to September, however, there was a -0.7% dip in median property values across NZ.
The total sales count over the 12 months to September is 88,731.
Total listings on the market were 27,565 in early October. The total number of properties listed on the market remains elevated, although it’s down from last year as sales activity outweighs new listings.
The pace of rental growth remains subdued, with net migration having fallen a long way from its peak, and the stock of available rental listings on the market still elevated.
Gross rental yields now stand at 3.8%, which is the highest level since mid-2016.
Inflation is back in the 1–3% target range. The Reserve Bank monetary policy easing cycle isn’t over as it aims to support the economy and avoid undershooting the target.
Buyer Classification data shows first home buyers reached a record 28% of purchases in September nationally, while mortgaged multiple property owners are making a solid comeback with nearly 25% market share, the highest since early 2021.
The Chart of the Month shows, in wider Wellington, first home buyers made up 36% of purchases over the September quarter, the highest among the main centres and above the national figure.
