REINZ Commentary—-“Sales volume for the Central Otago Region rose 15% compared to June 2015, with sales up 10% in Queenstown. Compared to May, sales volume fell 29% overall with sales falling 28% in Queenstown and 31% in Central. On a seasonally adjusted basis sales fell 10% in June.

The median price across the region rose $217,550 (+42%) compared to June 2015 to reach another record high. Prices rose 27% in Central and 26% in Queenstown. Compared to May 2016 the median price rose $22,800 (+3%) with prices rising 4% in Queenstown but falling 8% in Central. On a seasonally adjusted basis the median price increased 4.8% in June.

The number of days to sell eased by five days compared to May, from 33 days to 38-days in June. Over the past 10-years the average number of days to sell in June across the region has been 59-days.

REINZ Regional Director-Gail Hudson commented—The median price across the region continues to rise in no small part to the rise of auctions and the shortage of available properties for sale, which remain at very low levels compared to the level of demand. While not traditionally an option for vendors, auctions are now far more commonplace, with over 23% of sales over the past five months by auction.”

Informative updates are fundamental to be first to know when the time is right to make your move whether it be buying or selling. Adhering to REINZ policy I am not at liberty to comment on the market data so I’ll just let my ‘desktop analyses’ of the sales numbers do the talking.

Queenstown Area Sales by Property Type

Report Period: January- June 2016 comparing 2015

□ Report compares aggregated sales for the calendar year 2016 v 2015

□ REINZ reported sales. Private / Developer direct sales not included.

Property Type	Jan- June 2016	Jan– June 2015	Variance +/-
Residential Dwellings (RD)	294 sales	230 sales	+27.8%
RD Median Sell Price	$910,000	$738,000	+23.3%
Apartments (A)	53 sales	55 sales	-3.6%
A Median Sell Price	$550,000	$415,000	+32.5%
Units (U)	52 sales	60 sales	-13.3%
U Median Sell Price	$565,000	$467,500	+20.8%
Townhouses (TH)	20 sales	24 sales	-16.6%
TH Median Sell Price	$650,500	$614,250	+5.9%
Residential Sections (RS)	157 sales	79 sales	+98.7%
RS Median Sell Price	$390,000	$245,000	+59.1%
Rural (R)	48 sales	27 sales	+77.8%
R Median Sell Price	$1,175,000	$940,000	+25.0%
Total Sales Numbers	624 sales	475 sales	+31.3%
Value of Sales $	$549,971,921	$348,766,122	+57.6%

January – June 2016 comparing same period Year-to-date 2015:

• 2016 YTD median sell price residential dwellings all types (home, unit, apartment, townhouse)              $830,000. Sales above $1.0m represented 30.0% of all sales.
• 2015 YTD median sell price residential dwellings all types (home, unit, apartment, townhouse) $645,000. Sales above $1.0m represented 14.9% of all sales.

 REINZ Reported sales by price of Queenstown Residential Homes

January- June 2016 comparing same period Year-to-date 2015\

Price Band	% of Total Sales 2016	% of Total Sales 2015
<$350,000	0.3 %	4.5%
$351,000 – $450,000	2.0%	3.0%
$451,000 – $650,000	6.1%	28.8%
$651,000 – $999,000	50.6%	42.1%
$1.0m – $1.999m	34.5%	18.6%
$2.0m plus	6.5%	3.0%

REINZ Reported sales by price covering all property types —

(Homes, Units, Apartments and Townhouses).

January- June 2016 comparing same period Year-to-date 2015

Price Band	% of Total Sales 2016	% of Total Sales 2015
<$350,000	5.0%	10.0%
$351,000 – $450,000	3.3%	12.2%
$451,000 – $650,000	16.9%	29.5%
$651,000 – $999,000	43.7%	33.5%
$1.0m –      $1.999m	26.4%	12.7%
$2.0m plus	4.7%	2.1%

 

REINZ Reported sales by price of Residential Sections.

January- June 2016 comparing same period Year-to-date 2015

Price Band	% of Total Sales 2016	% of Total Sales 2015
<$199,000	3.2%	28.3%
$200,000 – $299,000	14.7%	34.6%
$300,000 – $499,000	53.5%	21.8%
$500,000 – $749,000	15.9%	2.5%
$750,000 – $999,000	17.0%	8.9%
$1.0m – $2.0m	5.7%	3.9%

 Data Source: REINZ. Private & Developer direct sales data not included.

Disclaimer:  While every effort has been made to ensure the information contained herewith is true, no responsibility will be taken for errors or omissions. You should seek your own independent advice from your legal, taxation and financial consultant prior to purchase.