New Zealand home values fall 1.5 pct in Q3

WELLINGTON, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand's residential property values fell by an average of 1.5 percent in the three months to the end of September, according to property valuation company Quotable Value (QV).

This photo taken on Oct. 29, 2025 shows a view of Napier, New Zealand. (Photo: Xinhua)

The decline eased slightly from 1.9 percent in the previous monthly report, while the average home value stood at 892,580 NZ dollars (500,594.57 U.S. dollars), down 1.9 percent since the start of 2026 and 0.9 percent year on year, the latest QV House Price Index showed on Monday.

"There are some minor green shoots here and there, mostly in the South Island, but it's still overwhelmingly one-way traffic, with buyers firmly in the driver's seat," QV national spokesperson Simon Petersen said in a statement, adding the first month of spring had brought little evidence that a broad-based recovery was imminent.

Buyers remained in a strong negotiating position amid plentiful property listings, economic uncertainty and the approaching Nov. 7 general election, Petersen said.

Only three of the country's main urban areas recorded growth in the September quarter. Home values rose 3.1 percent in Queenstown and 0.5 percent in Invercargill on the South Island, while Tauranga on the North Island recorded a marginal 0.1 percent increase, QV showed.

By contrast, values fell 3.2 percent in Gisborne, 3 percent in the capital Wellington and Whangarei, and 2.5 percent across Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, it said.

"The economic recovery remains uneven and we're seeing that reflected in property values," Petersen was quoted as saying.