NZ market shows 'strong signs'

New Zealand house prices were rising at an annual rate of 9.8 per cent in the three months to March, the property information firm QV has estimated.

This is up from the 9.3 per cent annual rate reported in February.

The average sale price for New Zealand properties is put at £135,000.

‘The residential market is again showing strong signs on the back of buoyant demand’, said QV spokesperson Mark Dow. ‘General economic confidence is high and the employment picture is positive with low unemployment figures. Buyers appear to continue to show confidence in the market and are willing to pay higher prices’.

The property values in the main urban centres continue to strengthen with Auckland City up 5.9 per cent, Wellington City 12 per cent, Christchurch 10.7 per cent and Dunedin 7.3 per cent. Hamilton’s property values grew at 12.2 per cent, the same rate as recorded last month.

Of the provincial cities, increases in growth rates were recorded in Porirua 14.1 per cent, Palmerston North 13.1 per cent, Nelson 10.1 per cent and New Plymouth 9.9 per cent. Annual growth eased slightly in Wanganui 13.8 per cent, Rotorua 11.8 per cent, Queenstown 4.6 per cent, and Hastings 3.9 per cent.

• Confidence in Singapore’s residential property market has resulted in brisk sales of many developments, said Colliers in its latest quarterly market overview.

‘For example, at the luxury end, all 98 units released for sale in the 175 unit Orchard Residences were fully snapped up within two weeks of its invitation-only private preview at a benchmark average price of $3,213 per square foot. Some units on the higher floors of the project reached more than $4,000 per square foot. At the high-end segment, City Developments Limited sold all of the 59 units in its project, The Solitaire, within a week of its soft launch. Located in the Balmoral area, the project was sold at an average price of $2,000 per square foot. The 45 unit View @ Meyer was 80 per cent sold at an average launch price of $1,500 per square foot, way above the average selling price of between $750 per square foot and $850 per square foot for nearby projects which were predominantly of the mid-tier range.

In the mid-tier market, the 273 unit Sky@Eleven at Upper Thomson by Singapore Press Holdings was fully sold at an average price of $975 per square foot within a day of its preview. One North Residences at Buona Vista saw 391 of the total 405 units being taken up within a week of its release, at an average price range of $880 per square foot to $900 per square foot.

The mass-market segment was no exception this quarter. Projects such as Yew Tee Residences at Yew Tee and The Carabelle at West Coast saw robust sales. For instance, the 50 units in Yew Tee Residences released for preview were quickly sold out at $495 per square foot, on average. Subsequently, 70 per cent of the remaining 89 units were taken up upon the official launch and the average selling price was also raised to $505 per square foot. At Sim Lian group’s 338-unit Carabelle at West Coast Way, 50 per cent of the units were sold during a weekend launch at an average price of $638 per square foot.