The Ray White Group has increased their property sales for the month of November 2013 by 8% on last year’s November result; however the sales are down by 5% on October 2013 results.
The recent introduction of the LVR changes put into place by the Reserve Bank have had an impact on the ability of first home buyers to purchase property. Ray White has also seen investors holding off from purchasing while they realign their borrowing capacities. This has had a direct influence on the average sale price, which has lifted to above $490,000 and is an 6% rise for November – the largest single rise of property prices in the last five years. The rise is directly attributed to the consistency of the middle and upper markets and the fall off in the first home buyer and investment market.
Overall there was an increase of controlled stock by 1% on last month’s total property listings. The company secured 2013 properties by controlled appointment, with auctions continuing to dominate the method of marketing during the past month.
Carey Smith, Chief Executive of Ray White New Zealand, said “While the sales for November could easily be seen as being consistent; there has been a definite drop away of first home buyers and investors in the market. This has meant sale prices have increased however the number of properties available on the market has also increased. This is a rare combination that means we may see an over supply of lower priced property given that first home buyers and investors are at at least half the level of this time last year.
Ray White Remuera was the top office for the company, completing their highest ever sales result with over $50 million in property sales. Ray White City Apartments again recorded excellent sales with 77 properties completed for the month. Ray White Ponsonby were the number three office trading in excess of $20 million in sales. Ray White Metro in Christchurch and Ray White Howick completed outstanding months to be number four and number five respectively in the Ray White Group.
The Northland zone continues to show year-on-year increases with the growth of Ray White now having 13 offices throughout the region. The top office was Ray White Whangarei. Ray White Kerikeri recorded a record sales month at just over $6.5 million.
In Auckland, outside of the top offices in New Zealand, Ray White Broadway, Ray White Kohimarama, Ray White Ellerslie and Ray White Pinehill all had outstanding months.
In the Central North Island, Te Awamutu recorded a record sales month completed $7.5 million in property sales. Ray White Hamilton and Ray White Rotorua also had successful months.
The Lower North Island zone was led by Ray White Wanganui with over $5 million in sales. Ray White Lower Hutt and Ray White Palmerston North also recorded strong sales months.
Ray White Richmond were recognised as a top 10 office in New Zealand with close to $11 million in sales. Ray White Nelson and Ray White Greymouth also completed outstanding sales month.
In the Canterbury region, Ray White Metro sold over $15 million in property. Ray White Rolleston and Ray White Full Circle both had above average months.
In the Lower South Island, Ray White Dunedin was the top office in the zone. Ray White Wanaka recorded a record sales month with over $5 million completed. Ray White Invercargill also completed a high level of sales.
The Ray White Group opened two new offices during the month of November, being Ray White Millwater on the Hibiscus Coast and Ray White Kelston in West Auckland. Three new offices have been confirmed to open in early 2014, being Ray White Westport, Ray White Takanini and Ray White St Heliers.
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