Wellington led the way with prices rising some 7.5% in higher in August compared with the same month a year ago and Auckland also showed a strong rally with prices increasing 4.4%.
The national median house price was $346,750, up 2% from July and 5.1% higher than the same month last year, the figures from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand, also show.
Although the actual number of sales are following a zig-zag pattern, down to 5,878, from 6,014 in July but up from 4,220 in August last year, analysts are confident that a recovery is underway.
Also the length of time it takes to sell a property is falling.
The median number of days it took to sell a house in August was 34, down from 37 in July and 55 in August last year.
REI president Mike Elford said the noticeable increase in sale numbers and speed of turnover compared with a year ago was positive.
‘We would be reluctant to say the hard times are over, but if the trees are not yet in full bloom, there are certainly buds in view,’ he said.
‘From the number of days it took to sell a house it was clear that the issue was not that houses were hard to sell but rather than there was a shortage of stock.
People have been sitting tight in their homes, enjoying the relief of lower interest rates and that is resulting in limited available stock,’ he explained.
REI members are finding that where properties are coming onto the market they are seeing multiple offers.
The figures back up an upward trend recorded by the last figures published by government agency Quotable Value which saw prices rise for the fifth month in a row. QV now puts prices at 6.2% below their peak in November 2007.
