Tag Archives: investments
Record median home prices recorded in four regions in New Zealand
Four regions in New Zealand saw record sale prices in July with the average median value up to $505,000, according to the latest data to be published. It means that the median sale price increased by $5,000, just $1,000 short of the record median price reached in May 2016, the data from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand shows. The Waikato/Bay of Plenty region recorded its eighth record median sale price in nine months, reaching $450,000, up 2.7% on June 2016, while the median price in Auckland reached $825,000, up 0.5%. Northland reached $376,000, up 4.4% and Manawatu/Wanganui reached $265,000, up 6.4%. The data also shows that inventory continues to fall rapidly nationwide, with a 33% decline in properties available for sale year on year and six regions seeing falls of greater than 40%. Wellington and Hawke’s Bay each have less than 10 weeks of supply available, with Waikato/Bay of Plenty at just on 10 weeks supply. At the same time, the number of residential dwelling sales for July 2016 was 7,299, a drop of 7% on June. Sales volumes also fell 10% compared to July 2015, with sales for Auckland falling just over 20% compared to July last year. ‘Prices continue to rise in many regions, showing that demand is still firm. Sales volumes remain below previous periods, as the continued shortage of supply impacts buyers, who are struggling to find properties to buy,’ said REINZ spokesperson Bryan Thomson. ‘We will watch market reaction with interest as the expected increase in listing numbers during the spring and summer selling period become available and the market assesses the impact of the recently announced LVR rule changes, the approval or otherwise of the Auckland Unitary Plan and possible interest rate cut,’ he explained. ‘We understand that it must get very confusing for people with so much data available on the real estate market. REINZ data provides the most up to date and complete set of detailed numbers on national sale prices and trends, plus the factors that underpin them. The key thing is to watch the trends over time, and particularly the seasonally adjusted numbers, as they take month on month changes out of the equation and focus on how the market is really moving,’ he added. A breakdown of the figures shows that the national median house price rose $40,000 or 9% to $505,000 from July 2015 to July 2016. Central Otago Lakes recorded the largest percentage increase in median price compared to July 2015, at 32%, followed by Waikato/Bay of Plenty at 26% and Northland at 16%. Auckland prices up, volumes come off, inventory stays tight Compared to July 2015 the median price across the Auckland region rose by $90,000, up 12% to a new record high of $825,000. On a seasonally adjusted basis Auckland's median price rose 1% compared to June. Although sales volumes in the Auckland region fell 8% compared to June, and fell 20% compared to July… Continue reading
Edinburgh named as top city to invest in student accommodation in UK
Edinburgh, Bristol and Brighton are the best university cities to invest in student property in the UK, with Oxford further down the list in fifth place and Cambridge seventh. The research from real estate agent Chestertons takes into account a range of factors including average cost, rent charges and growth in house prices and rates each city out of 10 with the top scoring 8.3, 7.9 and 7.8 respectively. Reading was not far behind with 7.7, then Oxford with 7.5, York with 7.1, Cambridge and St Andrews both on seven, and Southampton and Warwick, both on 6.6 making up the rest of the top 10. Aberystwyth in west Wales, Liverpool and Lancaster came out as the least beneficial investments among the 24 cities covered by the research, owing to more affordable rents and slower house price growth. Aberystwyth came last with a score of just 4.3 due to the lowest graduate income of just £16,000 and housing market growth in the region of -6%. Liverpool and Lancaster, both in the North West, followed closely behind, each scoring 5.3. ‘Student lets are generally seen as a great investment. There will always be a reliable level of demand and universities can often be really helpful in pointing students your way,’ said Daniel Killick, from Chestertons. ‘Some locations, however, offer a better return than others. We were keen to get some deeper insights into the UK’s student property market and understand where the most attractive prospects are and the ones that are less likely to pay off,’ he added. Continue reading
New home approvals in Australia down in June, latest data shows
The number of new home approvals in Australia fell by 0.9% in June, the second monthly fall in a row, according to the latest data to be published. In seasonally adjusted terms, total approvals decreased 2.9% with both total other residential dwelling approvals and total houses down by 3.4% and 2.4% respectively. The figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) also show that the value of total building approved rose 1.2% in June, in trend terms, and has risen for six months. The value of residential building rose 0.1% while non-residential building rose 3.7%. A breakdown of the figures show that home approvals decreased by 5.2% in Western Australia, by 3.7% in Tasmania, by 3.2% in Queensland, by 2.8% in the Australian Capital Territory and by 0.1% in Victoria. They increased by 3.6% in the Northern Territory, by 1.6% in South Australia and by 0.8% in New South Wales. Private sector house approvals fell by 3.5% in Western Australia, by 0.6% in Victoria, by 0.5% in Queensland and by 0.3% in South Australia but increased by 0.9% in New South Wales. Overall approvals are continuing to ease back from the record highs hit last year, according to Shane Garrett, senior economist for the Housing Industry Association (HIA). He explained that approvals for both the detached house and multi-unit side peaked in the middle of 2015. ‘Since then, detached house approvals have glided lower in an orderly manner. Multi-unit approvals have continued to be resilient, although sit at levels slightly lower than a year ago,’ Garrett pointed out. ‘The immediate pipeline of new home building work is set to remain very solid, based on this latest approvals update. Recent approvals releases have also highlighted the considerable variation in new home building activity across the different states and territories. We expect the trajectory of new dwelling approvals to continue retreating at a modest pace over coming months,’ he added. Continue reading
