OneRoof's latest report sheds light on the state of Rotorua's property market. Photo / Andrew Warner
OneRoof's latest report sheds light on the state of Rotorua's property market. Photo / Andrew Warner
Properties across all but one Rotorua suburb have increased in average value over the past three months as realtors express optimism for homebuyers and sellers for 2024.
The value increases in the three months to October 31 range from 2.6 per cent to 5.8 per cent, according to OneRoof’s latest report released today.
The highest lift was in Mangakakahi, where average property values have risen by 5.8 per cent. Koutu and Kawaha Point each have increases of more than 5 per cent in the past quarter as summer interest in lakeside properties rises.
Only Hamurana recorded a drop – 1.2 per cent over the three months.
All suburbs are up compared to pre-Covid-19, ranging from 5.7 per cent in Koutu to 28.1 per cent in Sunnybrook.
However, average property values in all suburbs are down year-on-year. Rotorua’s most expensive suburb, Humarana, plummeted by more than 10 per cent.
The OneRoof Property Report, with data partner Valocity, shows the average Rotorua property is valued at $743,000, a drop of 2.5 per cent compared to a year ago.
In Hamurana, where the average value is reported at just over $1.2 million, property values have fallen by 10.5 per cent in the year.
According to OneRoof’s report, Rotorua’s cheapest suburbs have also shown a year-on-year drop in average property value. The biggest change was in Victoria where the value fell by 6.1 per cent to $522,000.
House prices across Rotorua are, however, still 20.7 per cent higher on average than they were before the pandemic.
OneRoof’s report states the average Rotorua property value pre-Covid was $615,000.
One highlight was a property in Rotoiti Forest that sold for $3.435 million in February this year.
Rotorua real estate professionals are now optimistic about the trends to come.
Tremains central region general manager Stuart Christensen.
Tremains central region general manager Stuart Christensen said the beginning of this year did not show good market trends and going into winter “had its challenges”.
“Coming out of winter and into spring we’ve seen a lift,” Christensen told the Rotorua Daily Post.
“More buyers have come into the market, which has caused some competition.”
Christensen said Tremains had seen positive trends in the past three months.
“There’s no doubt about it. [For] 2024 there’s a positivity we’re hearing from buyers and future sellers alike. It feels like 2024 is going to be a better year.”
Heath Young, managing director of the Realty Group Ltd, which operates Eves and Bayleys.
Realty Group Limited managing director Heath Young said OneRoof’s data was very much aligned with the activity Eves and Bayleys had seen over the past 12 months.
“The property market at the moment is showing real signs of positivity with pricing stabilised and now showing three-month gains.”
Young said Realty Group had seen a “real lift” in new listings over the past two weeks.
“[This] is also a strong signal that the market is returning to normal.”
Young said the data also showed the impact of more first-home buyers being in the market with many of the lower-priced suburbs experiencing the largest gains as there was more competition for the same property.
“This data positively supports both homebuyers and homeowners because it provides a more certain and efficient market, especially with the increased listing activity.”
OneRoof editor Owen Vaughan said while property prices in Rotorua did “slide quite a lot” from their peak in January 2022, the property market was “looking up”.
“We’re starting to see a pick-up,” Vaughan said.
“Things are starting to bounce back.”
Vaughan said he expected to see more action around Rotorua’s lakeside suburbs over the summer and into the new year, with more listings expected in January and February 2024.
OneRoof editor Owen Vaughan said although property values had decreased, they were still significantly up from where they were pre-Covid. Photo / NZME
“It will start to feel like a normal summer market and those tend to do well.”
Vaughan said property prices had slumped but mortgages had gone “sky high” this year.
“Now you’re looking at mortgages of 7 per cent and above. That has wiped out that sense of affordability because most buyers are curtailed by what they can afford in terms of mortgage.”
However, Vaughan said the slump had meant investors were largely out of the property market, leaving an even playing field for first-home buyers to compete against each other.
“Prices are steadily rising,” Vaughan said.
“So investors might be back on the market sometime soon.”
Vaughan said, for now, he expected buyers to remain “gun-shy”.
“Until people get more certainty around what the market will do, they will want to wait and see.”
