NZ house prices slip from record in January, volume has seasonal dip

New Zealand house prices eased from a record last month while the volume of sales had a seasonal dip compared to December, according to the Real Estate Institute.

The national median house price fell 4.9 percent in January from December to $370,000 and was 4.2 percent higher than in January 2012. The median price in Auckland rose 8.1 percent from January last year.

The REINZ Stratified House Price Index, which smoothes out peaks and troughs in median prices, fell 1 percent from December to be up 7.2 percent from the same month last year.

Sales fell 14.3 percent from December to 4,933 and were up 21 percent from January 2012. Volumes typically ease in January, a month when many kiwis take a holiday.

Days to sell rose to 41 days in January from 32 days in December though improved by six days from January last year.

Compared to the same month last year, the volume of sales in Auckland climbed 27 percent. Southland sales rose 40 percent and Northland’s by 39 percent.