QV says Auckland property hot spots cooling

Photo / Michelle Hyslop

Auckland's property market "hot spots" could be starting to warm down, according to QV data out today, which cited changes in Waitakere, Flat Bush and Papakura.

Bruce Wiggins, QV valuer, named these three areas, saying value rises in the latest data were less spectacular than they had been.

"We are seeing a gradual reduction in the rate of growth in property values in some areas and more sellers opting to put on an asking price or sell by negotiation. The gradual reduction in growth is particularly noticeable in 'hot spots' such as Waitakere, which was up more than 17 per cent year on year a few months ago and is now showing a 15.2 per cent increase year on year and Papakura, where values are also flattening off," he said.

"Within Flat Bush, there appears to be a flattening of prices in recent times. This may be due to a number of builders/developers who bought land on terms at around the same time completing construction with the new builds appearing on the market at similar times. This can create an over-supply and may affect values somewhat there," Wiggins said.

But overall, Auckland values are still rising fast.

QV said the Auckland region as a whole had increased 2.7 per cent over the past three months and 12.3 per cent year on year. Manukau East is up the most with values increasing 4.3 per cent over the past three months, followed by the North Shore's North Harbour where values have risen 4. per cent. In Waitakere City, values rose 2.3 per cent over the same period, QV reported.

Wiggins said land-banking remained popular in North-West Auckland where there are a number of new subdivisions being undertaken and more were planned. Auctions also remained popular in expensive areas or where there are special characteristics, Wiggins said.

National residential property values rose 8 per cent in the June year, and 2.1 per cent over the past three months. This means they are now 15.0 per cent above the previous market peak of late 2007. When adjusted for inflation the nationwide annual increase drops slightly to 6.3 per cent and values remain below the 2007 peak by 1.3 per cent, QV reported.

Read the full QV release here: