Newbold said there were a few.
But of the key ones that had sold recently, the majority had gone to trees, he said. PGG Wrightson had sold a few which had gone on to be sheep and beef blocks.
Newbold was of the opinion that we’d reached a point now where we needed to slow down on conversion to trees.
Turning to 2023, Mackay asked what activity we’re going to see in the market in the New Year, especially in an environment with higher interest rates.
Surely the rural market must cool its heels, he asked.
According to Newbold, there had been a couple of good months recently, it had just slowed a little.
He thought 2023 would still be strong, with more listings coming onto the market in the early autumn period. He expected to see a stabilising of prices due to interest rates, costs on-farm etc. There might be downward pressure depending on location, he said.
Mackay ventured that this may not be a bad thing. Newbold agreed that there was a sweet point value-wise.
There needed to be an adjustment - it made good sense, he said.
Turning to the lifestyle market, Mackay remarked that it ran hot post-pandemic, as everyone wanted out of town and wanted their green space in the country.
Newbold said the lifestyle market had really slowed - but it would come back.
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Vendors and purchasers were trying to find that price point.
He thought that as the New Year unfolded, this would bottom out but each region was different.
He said in some regions, the price might have dropped five per cent. In others, it might have dropped by 15 per cent.
Finally, Mackay touched on the horticulture sector and brought up the halcyon days when a canopy hectare of kiwi fruit might sell for $2 million. Has that ship sailed, he asked.
Newbold pointed out there hadn’t been a lot of activity - and some value had come back out of that.
He said there would be some idea of what the crop was looking like around March or April, - then there would be some activity and you’d see where values sat.
