Number of homes for sale at highest level in 10 years

Tuesday, 1 April 2025

There were 36,870 homes listed for sale nationwide in March, Realestate.co.nz says. (file photo)

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Home buyers continue to be spoilt for choice, with the number of homes for sale nationwide at decade-high levels, Realestate.co.nz says.

There were 36,870 homes listed nationwide in March, a 10.9% increase on 33,245 at the same time last year, the property website’s latest figures showed.

It was an indication that despite an increase in sales activity over recent months the number of homes on the market has continued to increase.

Back in November there were 33,984 homes on the market, which was the highest stock level since April 2015. That figure was itself a stark contrast to 12,000 at the peak of the market in 2021.

Now, the Realestate.co.nz figures show an annual increase in the number of homes for sale in all but one of the 19 regions monitored. Northland was the exception, with stock levels down by just 0.4%.

Buyers have more control in the current market, Realestate.co.nz spokesperson Vanessa Williams says.

In Auckland there were 13,693 houses on the market, up 10.4% from the same time last year, while Wellington and Canterbury’s stock was up 20.7% and 19.5% to 2195 and 4093 respectively.

Realestate.co.nz spokesperson Vanessa Williams said the lift in stock reflected a shift in the market, with seller confidence now back.

“Two years ago, many sellers hit pause as high interest rates and election uncertainty made people cautious about listing.

“That’s clearly changed, as there were 7586 more properties for sale last month than in the same month in 2023.”

New listings were also up 5.0% annually to 12,029 nationwide in March, and 13 of the 19 regions recorded annual increases in new listings.

But Williams said the data also suggested homes sold more quickly last month.

“In February, a significant proportion of listings had been on site for 60 to 90 days. In March, a larger share was listed for a shorter period of between 30 and 60 days.

Listings were spending less time on Realestate.co.nz in March, suggesting properties are selling slightly faster, Williams says.

“Seeing more listings spend less time on site points to properties selling slightly faster. This trend is also mirrored in the Real Estate Institute sales data from February.”

There was no sign of a sharp upswing in the market yet, but there were signs of quiet momentum as 2025 progressed, she said.

“But despite the signs of growing economic confidence, it’s yet to translate into upward price pressure.”

Realestate.co.nz’s figures showed the average national asking price was down 2.6% annually to $859,015 in March, from $882,302 at the same time last year.

While the national average was up 0.8% on February, it had now remained below $900,000 for over two years, Williams said.

“It last exceeded that mark in December 2022 at a seasonally adjusted $916,487. At the peak of the market in January 2022, it reached $983,415.”

On an annual basis only one of the 19 regions, Nelson and Bays (up 2.5% to $866,948) recorded an increase in average asking prices in March.

Auckland’s average asking price was down 2.3% to $1.03 million, while Wellington’s fell 4.0% to $816,542 and Canterbury’s dipped 0.3% to $719,218.

Williams said prices would not start to move upwards until the surplus stock on the market started to be absorbed by buyers.

“But there’s so many homes for sale that buyers have lots of choice - even if they have budgetary or conditional restraints. That means there is no urgency, and buyers have more control.”

Sellers should think sharply on pricing and marketing strategies, she said.

“Sometimes there is a focus on a certain price at all costs, but in a market like this if you have a buyer on the hook you should work with your real estate agent to keep to an agreement that suits you both.”

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