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 for February 2023 compared to prior periods. 

Annual property values continued to decrease across the country. New Zealand's median house price dropped to $762,000, down 13.9% compared to a year ago. Bay of Plenty's median price now sits at $821,000, down 15.3% annually, although there was an increase of 6.9% from January 2023. The Rotorua District median house price of $600,000 decreased from $720,00 or 16.7% compared to February 2022.

Sales volume nationally was down 31.1% compared to last year's period. Still, there was a month on month increase from January of 40.4%. New listings have eased as people respond to economic conditions and the impact of extreme weather. There was a 29.5% decrease in new listings from 11,545 in February 2022 to 8143 in February 2023. The median number of days to sell a property in February 2023 was 60 compared to 42 days in February 2022. At the end of February 2023 there were 29,083 properties available for sale across New Zealand, an annual increase of 25%. There is more choice for buyers in the market today. Rising interest rates, increased cost of living, and the inability to secure finance still impact buyers and their affordability levels.

Neville Falconer, REINZ Regional Director, says "First home buyers are beginning to make a comeback. Owner occupiers looking for properties at the top end of the market are showing the most interest. In Rotorua, the number of people in emergency housing has nearly halved in the past year, which is positive news for Rotorua. Agents are hoping this may attract more buyers soon. Access to finance is still difficult, particularly for first time buyers or purchasers with low equity."

Remember to look at our current listings for all our properties for sale in Rotorua.