Dunedin Property Report - October 2022 (Sept 2022 stats)

September continued to show improvements in the Dunedin market with prices holding steady and buyer attendance at open homes continuing to improve.

The median sale price of $601,000 made it three months at around $600,000, possibly marking the expected plateau as the market finds a new equilibrium.

The standout figure for the month was the median days on the market which dropped from 47 down to 39. This is one of the largest one-month jumps in this figure we have seen and certainly reinforces the improved interest from buyers that we have noticed in the past two months.

The number of listings available on Realestate.co.nz lifted to 538 after dipping below 500 in August. This aligns with our internal tracking showing significantly more properties listed for sale in the past month than were sold, leading to an accumulation of available stock.

The number of sales was relatively low at 135 for the month but often activity doesn’t really pick up until October as people begin to work towards a Christmas deadline for buying and selling.

Bank lending and interest rates remain significant influences in the market with the OCR being raised once again and indications that further rises may be in store. As a result, banks are now “stress testing” potential borrowers’ ability to service lending at well above current floating rates in anticipation of further rises. The positive news is that with the decrease in market activity, banks are now competing harder for new clients in some cases by providing cash-back offers when taking out mortgages and taking longer to lift interest rates after OCR increases, indicating a stronger inclination to compete on rates than in recent years. 

Joe Nidd AREINZ
Owner/Principal