Review of the property sales market in the Motueka area for October 2010

October 20
By Alan Atkins, Ray White Motueka

[Editor's note: Ray White Motueka is the Principal Sponsor of Motueka Online, and one item of assistance it provides is a regular, general update on the state of property sales in the area. The reports do not contain any promotion of Alan's company, but are provided purely for informational purposes]

Nationally the number of residential property sales for last month has shown a slight improvement over the previous month but at only 4323 they are still less than half the total number of properties sold in September 2006, when the market was at the height of the property boom. The national median price has held relatively steady at $350,000 for the past two months.

The devastating earthquake in Canterbury also continues to have an effect with the Canterbury / Westland region's total of 396 residential property sales for September 2010 less than half that recorded for the same month last year.

Across the Nelson/Marlborough district the median price remained at $330,000, the same as the previous month and down slightly on the September 2009 median of $337,125. Residential property sales for the area were 172 last month, down on the 224 sales recorded in September last year.

It appears that economically, while things may still be tough there are better times ahead. The latest BNZ Confidence Survey showed a firm lift in sentiment compared with two months ago. A net 18% of respondents feel the economy will get better over the coming year. While there has been a generally positive sentiment in the likes of dairying, horticulture, and residential rentals, the overall assessment given to current conditions was a poor.

The good news is interest rates appear to be stable at present, with any increase likely to be related to an increase in economic activity. The general consensus appears that if you are currently off or due to come off a fixed rate there is no need to rush in to a new fixed rate as these are currently well above the floating rate.

Locally we have seen a small increase in the number of properties coming on to the market when compared to the August period. With the relatively low number of sales this has resulted in an increase in the total number of properties on the market.

As noted last month, buyers and their lenders are remaining very conservative on what they will pay/lend for a property and this, combined with many sellers' reluctance to negotiate much below where they see their properties value, is likely to mean the volume of property sales will stay low for a bit longer yet.

Overall, with our local economy fairly stable and better off than other areas, I expect that we will see a gradual increase in the number of sales over the next few months as the passage of time takes more people to a point where they are confident to make a move.

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