Tag Archives: real-estate
Auckland sees unprecedented housing market activity
Unprecedented sales activity in March saw Auckland’s residential housing market establish new records for prices and sales numbers, according to the latest index for the New Zealand city. March is always the most active month for property sales, but there has never been a month’s trading to compare with the past month, according to Peter Thompson, managing director of Barfoot & Thompson. The average sales price increased by 3.9% compared with February, pushing the average sales price to an all-time high of $776,729. It is more than $17,000 higher than the previous record average price set in December last year. The median price at $711,000 increased by 1.1% over that for February and is 9% higher than the median in March 2014, the data also shows. ‘March has set a string of new records,’ said Thompson, adding that a quarter of all the homes sold in the month were for in excess of $1 million and the firm sold 1,597 homes in the month, the highest number ever in a calendar month. ‘Buyers were not put off by the record prices, and for the last two weeks of the month we sold more than 400 homes each week, the highest two weeks trading in the company’s history,’ he explained. ‘Buyers remain convinced that with a stable economy, low interest rates and restricted housing availability, that buying at current prices is manageable,’ he added. The data reveals that in the first quarter of this year, the average sales price has risen 6.1% over 2014’s average price for the year of $716,588, and March’s average price was 7% higher than it was 12 months’ previously. During the firm sold 420 homes for in excess of $1 million, 167 more than the 253 homes we sold in March last year, which until now was the highest number of $1 million homes sold in a month. At the same time it sold 300 homes for under $500,000, which represented 18.8% of sales. According to Thompson current high prices are encouraging more home owners to bring their property to market, and during March the firm listed 1,997 new properties, the highest number in the past 17 months. ‘At month’s end we had 3347 properties on our books for sale, the highest for 10 months. While sales activity in April is unlikely to match that for March, given the relatively good level of choice available trading can be expected to remain extremely active,’ he concluded. Continue reading
House prices in prime central London market largely flat for last six months
Annual house price growth in prime central London declined marginally to 3.3% in March and this could be due to the forthcoming general election, according to a new analysis report. It was the sector’s lowest rate in more than five years and despite a 0.1% rise in March, prices have remained broadly flat over the last six months as uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the election on 07 May intensifies, says the report from real estate firm Knight Frank. ‘Activity is stronger in lower price brackets and where there is a more pressing need to act, though some parts of the market are treading water ahead of the vote and one of the most unpredictable elections in decades has caused some buyers and sellers to postpone decisions until there is clarity around the outcome,’ said Knight Frank associate Tom Bill. ‘As electioneering got underway in March, the polls still indicate a hung parliament is the most likely outcome. However, strong activity in some markets suggests there is a degree of pent-up demand that could be released after May,’ he added. The report says that the top three markets by sales volumes at the start of 2015 have been Knightsbridge, Islington and St John’s Wood. ‘Islington has benefited from the fact property taxes such as stamp duty have affected lower value properties to a lesser degree than higher value areas and annual growth of 7% is the second highest in prime central London after Hyde Park,’ explained Bill. He also pointed out that sales in Knightsbridge have been strong due to a series of high quality new build and newly refurbished properties that are ready for immediate occupation. ‘Buyers in prime central London are increasingly focussed on the quality of the property’s finish and facilities rather than its postcode, though in the case of Knightsbridge both have combined to produce a strong sales market at the start of 2015,’ said Bill. Meanwhile, St John’s Wood is benefiting as more buyers seek better value and more space than markets further south in central London. ‘While the overall picture is subdued, what is happening in these three markets highlights some key trends that could contribute towards driving the market after the general election,’ added Bill. Continue reading
Most property hotspots in UK are in London
Nine out of 10 property hotspots in the UK are in London with Sutton named in the latest index that monitors the number of properties sold in comparison to those on sale. The south west London borough has seen a 67% demand for property with the previous top spot of Bexley pushed down to sixth position with 62%, according to the index from online estate agent eMoov. The two London Hotspots are joined in the top 10 by a number of other outer London boroughs and commuter friendly towns, with quick and improving transport links into the heart of the capital. They are Cambridge at 66%, Watford at 64%, Bristol and Reading both at 63%, Guildford at 59%, Aylesbury at 57%, Havering at 57% and Hillingdon at 56%. Some parts of London have seen demand drop severely, for example Wandsworth at 32% has seen a fall of 11% since December 2014 and has dropped out of the top 50 hotspots. With a property demand of just 12%, Nine Elms is the coldest spot in the UK. The firm says this is a surprise as the area is due to benefit from the planned extension of the Northern Line. But it seems that those already selling their property in Nine Elms, may have jumped the gun and increased the price in anticipation. The resulting inflation in house prices looks to be a factor influencing the low demand in the area at present, it is also contributing towards the decline in property demand for Wandsworth as a whole. Although outer London and the surrounding commuter areas have continued to enjoy a strong demand for property, it is in fact the North West that has seen the most marked improvement. The hotspots that have enjoyed the biggest turn around in demand since December are mostly located in the North West. Sefton has seen the greatest improvement in demand, up 80% since December, followed by Huddersfield up 56%, Trafford up 24%, Bradford up 23%, Stoke-on-Trent and Bolton both up 21% and Warrington up 19%. Half of the top 10 coldest spots in the UK are in the north east. North Tyneside with a current demand percentage of 13%, is the second coldest spot across the UK and has seen the biggest decrease in demand for property since December, falling by 43%. It is closely followed by County Durham, where demand declined over the course of 2014 and has continued to do so, dropping by a further 37% on December’s hotspots index. ‘It’s almost a tale of two halves in the North alone, let alone the North and South. The North West seems to be flourishing as demand for housing increases almost across the board. It is however a very different picture in the North East, as it accounts for a number of the coldest spots in the March Hotspots Index,’ said Russell Quirk, the firm’s chief executive officer. ‘As we predicted last summer, commuter towns around the capital… Continue reading
