Auckland housing hit by listings drought

File photo / Janna Dixon

Auckland homeowners cannot sell because they are unable to find another place to buy.

James Wilson of QVhomevalue Auckland said the city was beset by a listings drought, which was having knock-on effects.

"There is a severe shortage of listings across Auckland and we are getting reports that people are cautious about selling their homes without first securing somewhere else to move to. Vendors are wary about being priced out of the market, so if they were to sell at auction on a Monday and were cashed up, they might not be able to buy where they would like to and they could be caught out without a house," he said.

Real estate agents and economists have also highlighted sales volume declines, pointing to a type of "lockjaw'' besetting the market.

Andrea Rush, QV national spokesperson, also said this was an issue.

"Following a big month of sales in December there remains a shortage of properties listed for sale and this is continuing to put pressure on values and also on buyers, particularly in Auckland and Hamilton where many who are keen to buy cannot find a suitable property," she said.

QV data out today showed big value jumps across the city.

The Auckland City-Southern area saw the greatest increase with values rising 7.9 per cent over the past three months and 14.1 per cent year on year.

That area includes Onehunga, Mt Wellington and Otahuhu.

The blue ribbon Auckland City-East which includes Remuera, Glendowie and St Heliers was also up 6.7 per cent over the past three months and 13.6 per cent year on year while Auckland City-Central which includes the CBD, Epsom and Parnell increased 4.7 per cent over the past three months and 11.2 per cent year on year.

In Manukau, Papakura District saw the greatest increase with values accelerating 7.3 per cent over the past three months and 11.3 per cent year on year; Manukau-North West values rose 6.6 per cent over the past three months and 13.4 per cent year on year; Manukau Central was up 2.6 per cent over the past three months and 10.1 per cent year on year; and Manukau East values increased 3.3 per cent since November and 8.7 per cent year on year.

Wilson said Reserve Bank lending restrictions were having an effect.

"The LVR restrictions appear to be continuing to impede those buyers without a 20 per cent deposit, and getting into a home is being made more difficult as the shortage of stock is creating more competition and upward pressure on values," he said.

Nationally, January residential property values increased 5.7 per cent over the past year and 2 per cent over the past three months. This meant they were now 19.2 per cent above the previous market peak of late 2007. When adjusted for inflation the nationwide annual increase had daropped slightly to 4.9 per cent and values were now 2 per cent above the 2007 peak, QV said.

Rush said national value rises were mainly being driven by Auckland which has seen a continued acceleration.

"However, the other main cities and many provincial centres were now also showing more moderate increases in value," she said.