Welcome to Key Real Estate's monthly Property Report.

We'll look at properties for sale in Rotorua, the Bay of Plenty, and across the country.

Check out the house price highlights below!

Median residential property prices decreased by 0.6%, from $780,000 in December 2023 to $775,000 in December 2024. Bay of Plenty's median house price was $840,000, corresponding with nationwide prices and an annual increase of 1.2%. In December, the Rotorua District's median house price was $685,000, a 12.5% increase compared to last year. The median nationwide price, excluding Auckland, was $710,000, with a rise of 1.4% compared to December 2023. Bay of Plenty's median house price was up 1.8% compared to November. The Rotorua District increased by $76,000 or 12.5%

The total number of properties for sale nationwide increased by 19.8% from December 2023 to 31,338 in December 2024. The Bay of Plenty has increased inventory by 15.4% since December 2023. First-home buyers were the most active buyer group across the region, while owner-occupiers were also out in force in Tauranga. Investor activity in Rotorua was notably higher. When vendor price expectations were realistic, their properties sold; when expectations weren't realistic, their properties didn't sell.

Jen Baird, REINZ CEO, noted: "Sales have risen year-on-year, though we saw a larger than usual drop off in sales this festive season. This suggests that December 2024 was impacted by the way the holidays fell, making it a shorter-than-usual December, with many people choosing to start their holidays early this year. Buyers had ample stock, and many expected further interest rate reductions, so there was limited urgency in the market in December."

We hope you enjoyed this month's Property Report.

With so much movement in house prices, contact Key Real Estate, your Rotorua property specialist, to find your property value!