In brief
New listings in New Zealand fell 4.5% year‑on‑year in October, while available housing stock rose 11.4%. Auction activity fell to a seven‑year low, and regional price movements varied, with Auckland falling 5.2% and Otago rising 13.2%. The slowdown reflects uncertainty ahead of the general election.
In Wellington, New Zealand, the property market slowed in October as buyers and sellers adopted a cautious stance ahead of Saturday's general election.
Data released by realestate.co.nz showed that new listings for the month fell 4.5 percent year on year while the supply of homes available for sale increased 11.4 percent, the highest October level in more than a decade.
The percentage of new listings that appeared as auctions dropped to 22.1 percent in October, down from 26.2 percent a year earlier and 28.3 percent during the election period in 2023. Auction activity has fallen to its lowest October share in seven years.
Sarah Wood
CEO of realestate.co.nz
Auctions can be a sign of vendor confidence in the property market.
Wood said the decline in auction activity reflected sellers taking a more cautious approach amid wider economic challenges and global uncertainty that weighed on confidence.
New listings declined in 11 of New Zealand's 19 regions. Auckland saw a 7.9 percent annual fall, while Coromandel and Northland recorded sharper decreases of 16.1 percent and 15.2 percent respectively.
In contrast, the South Island bucked the national trend. Otago lifted its listings by 13.1 percent in October.
The national average asking price fell 2.7 percent year on year to 840,380 New Zealand dollars (about 468,188 U.S. dollars) in October.
Auckland prices dropped 5.2 percent to 984,527 New Zealand dollars, while Otago recorded the strongest regional increase, rising 13.2 percent to 646,871 New Zealand dollars.
These shifts suggest that while sellers remain cautious ahead of the election, there is still room for regional variation in price movements.
With the general election scheduled for Saturday, market participants are closely watching how political outcomes may further influence housing demand and supply dynamics.