Given everything that’s going on at the moment, you could be forgiven for missing that New Zealand’s population just topped the five million mark. The milestone snuck up on us so fast, in just seventeen years in fact. We almost forgot to pause and think just what will be the impacts of the rapidly increasing membership of ‘club Aotearoa’. Of particular interest for us, of course, is the...
Over the last month we’ve been busy catching up with buyers to see if they still intend to purchase a home. And the overwhelming answer? Yes! So, why is it that some buyers are confident in property and what are the upsides of buying in this market? Off the pace It’s nearly impossible to pick the bottom of a market. The only way you will really know is when you hear reports that prices...
WOW. What a whirlwind of change. Barely three months ago the world was ticking along nicely, the Auckland market was back and booming and stocks were hitting record prices. We had winter getaways booked and Trump was licking his lips with the prospect of re-election. Our new reality? Forget you ever had a plan. And don’t even think about making one. Because there is no timeframe for our ‘new...
The big change this year has been the number of parents looking to buy property for their children. There are two motives driving this change: providing accommodation in a tight rental market and securing a foothold in the investment market. The difficulty for any buyer at the moment is stock levels with only 552 properties available for sale at the time of writing. This month we ask why is it that so...
The market is back in full swing and now is the time we all better start looking forward to our Easter break! We had a great holiday spending time with family but we’re excited to be back for another year in the property market. As we attempt to try and predict the unpredictable, here is how we think the year might shape up. Market Movement Auckland finished 2019 strong with good prices and...
That’s right, we’re hurtling towards party season where the day to day grind makes way for champagne and frivolity. This month we look at the year in review and share our motto for buying property in 2020. The beginning The year kicked off the same way as 2018 ended but started running out of steam quickly. We saw low attendance at open homes and fewer offers, if any, at the deadline. Media...
It’s been over ten years since the global financial crisis caused a significant correction in our property market. What was interesting about the growth between 2003 and 2007 (which preceded that correction) was as prices increased so too did interest rates. Now, if you fast forward to more recent times, we’ve had a strong growth period coupled with falling interest rates. This, in principle, is...
Buying a house can be very frustrating especially when it’s your first time. And when it comes to presenting an offer to a vendor, less is obviously more. But with increasing risk aversion, pressure on lending and an insurance industry in turmoil, it is becoming more and more difficult to offer unconditionally. This month, we look at the ways each party in a transaction views conditions, and how to make...
In my humble opinion, Jack Nicolson’s line: ‘you can’t handle the truth’ is the best quote from the movie, A Few Good Men. In fact, it may just be the best quote from any movie ever. The funny thing is, it’s true. This month we ponder why it is so hard to handle the truth. The truth of being an agent On my return to real estate sales after a six-year stint as a valuer, I was still in...
Humans are naturally lazy. This statement may be somewhat confronting particularly for those of you who are self-motivated and hard working. But underlying all that, the preference, as a species, would be to do a lot less. Back in the day the ability to retain food stores meant survival during times of shortage. These days, food is available all day every day. Recent development in the supply of...