Whats in the News?
1. Todays mortgage rates as at 14 February 2013
It is becoming increasingly likely that the Reserve Bank may require Aucklanders in particular to have bigger deposits to buy property, economists say. MORE». To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
2. Todays mortgage rates as at November 14th 2012
Residental property has again come out on top as the investment which people think will give them the best return - and it's not just Aucklanders who think this. Details here To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
3. Todays mortgage rates as at October 25th 2012
Read the full text here of what the new Reserve Bank governor Graeme Wheeler said in his first OCR statement here. A more detailed story will follow.To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
4. List early for the new year!
For several months we have been talking about the surge in real estate prices, despite the downturn in economy and jobs. We also know that this upward spiral will continue for three to four years - or more - primarily because Auckland isn’t building new subdivisions. On the North Shore, for example, you’ve got to go out as far as Hobsonville or Silverdale to witness any new building. The banks aren’t prepared to finance big projects, and the building suppliers don’t hold enough stock for building if they did. We seem to have two parallel market conditions. The economy is still shaky, we’re into the fourth year of recession, and we have more visible evidence of retrenchment by the big companies and the banks - just like it was in 1991 following the ‘87 crash. And yet .... here we are selling homes as fast as they come onto the market!
Auctions are exceeding reserve, and good listings are still in short supply as the average Auckland family is not moving from home to home. The market is driven by first home buyers, investors returning to the market, expatriates returning home, and Asian buyers. On the Chinese horoscope, the Year of the Dragon seems to have unearthed plenty of confident, determined buyers. Where people have restructured and cashed up, it’s the investors and first home buyers that are first in with the offers. All of this has caused a big shortage in rental properties, with some rents going through the roof.
Can we make predictions for the North Shore?
Traditionally we follow city-fringe suburbs by six-to-eight months, when city hopefuls realise they must extend their search. Our Point Chevalier office is handling record numbers of sales, and properties closer to the city are few and phenomenally priced - so from December onwards expect the rental and house sale markets to get even hotter! There’ll be no lull for three years, as the familiar cycle repeats itself. If you are thinking of selling next year, talk to a licensed real estate agent over the next few weeks with a view to listing before Christmas. This way all the photos can be taken, the marketing programme sorted, and you’ll be all set to rock’n’roll in the New Year.
Advice for people looking to buy?
Buy now! The interest rates have never been cheaper, and as the banks become ever more competitive there’ll be additional incentives. And don’t pin all your hopes on one auction property, only to wait four weeks and find you’ve missed out. But it’s important to remember - buy within your price range, don’t stretch yourself too far. The advice is as old as your grandparents - use home buying as a stepping stone, even if you have to buy and sell several homes to achieve what you want.
Really, the answer to our housing shortage is simple: as a country we need to stimulate the building industry. There are now encouraging signs of recovery in the US building industry, and I feel it’s the surest way of bringing us out of our economic malaise.
5. Todays mortgage rates as at October 3rd 2012
As we reported on Monday ASB has lowered its two-year rate from 5.45% to 5.25% which is the lowest unrestricted rate on the market. It's also wooing customers with the offer of a free Galaxy tablet.
“This reduced two year rate launches our annual spring home loan campaign, which marks the traditional increased activity in house sales over the warmer months," ASB general manager retail products and strategy Shaun Drylie says, "We are pleased to offer this fantastic rate regardless of a customer’s loan to value ratio, and new home loan customers will also receive a free Samsung Galaxy tablet and up to $1,000 cash.”
Existing customers who fix for the next three, four or five years and are fixing $100,000 or more, will also receive a free Samsung Galaxy tablet.
6. Todays mortgage rates as at September 24th 2012
Monday, September 24th, 6:15AM Add your comment. News that Westpac has cut its long-term fixed rate home loans to sub-6% levels could well open up a new battle in the mortgage wars. Story and graph here.
7. Todays mortgage rates as at September 11th 2012
Westpac has ended its one-year fixed home loan rate special of 4.99%. This was one of those rates conditional on the borrower having at least 20% in the deal. At the same time it has cut one and two year fixed rates four points each, and the four and five year fixed rates are down 15 points and 10 points respectively.
8. Todays mortgage rates as at August 21st 2012
ANZ sets a new record for home loans http://www.mortgagerates.co.nz/article/976499954/anz-sets-record-for-home-loans.html. In rate change news BNZ has introduced a new "Classic" two-year rate, but it requires at least 20% equity in any deal, and has increased some three and four year rates.
To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
9. Todays Mortgage Rates as at July 25th 2012
It's interesing to see wholesale interest rates and swap rates in particular are heading down again. They haven't yet plumbed the same depths that prompted slashing of mortgage rates but it will be worth watching what happens. (Add into that the latest developments in Europe).
10. Sellers hold power as house shortage bites (New Zealand Herald 2/7/2012)
People selling their homes hold the power as a worsening shortage of property listings combines with strong demand from buyers. Figures released yesterday by Realestate.co.nz show the number of homes for sale in New Zealand has dropped to its lowest point since January 2008. And the industry says the shortage will be long term as a lack of easy finance and political urgency slows new development in areas such as central Auckland. Realestate.co.nz's monthly property report also showed that in June the national inventory of homes for sale dropped below 30 weeks for the first time in four years, to 29.8 weeks. The long-term average is 41 weeks. Inventory is measured by the projected number of weeks it would take to clear existing stock of unsold homes on the market.
"For the first five months of 2012 sales are 25 per cent up year on year. But over the same period new listings were only up 6 per cent," said Alistair Helm, the site's chief executive. "Each of the key regions - Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury - registered some of their lowest levels of inventory on record in June, simply because buyers have been so active."
He said the shortage of listings in almost every region of the country had now reached a critical point. "With inventory levels so low, not one region of New Zealand can now be described as a buyer's market. "If properties do go to auction you're seeing very aggressive bidding and some quite incredible prices achieved for what in some ways have been pretty ordinary properties."
Mr Helm said high demand for homes pushed average asking prices up to record levels last month, but that had reduced slightly in June to a seasonally adjusted average price of $424,315. "It will be interesting to see how the ongoing demand for property affects asking prices over the remaining winter months."
The housing market has heated up as rock-bottom interest rates pit investors and first home-buyers against each other in the bid for a limited number of property listings. Pent-up demand combined with record-low interest rates have seen some buyers face a long search for a suitable property. Real Estate Institute of New Zealand chief executive Helen O'Sullivan said the data was more confirmation of a long-term trend that was set to continue. She said the demise of finance companies had meant funding for new developments was scarcer. Political will to address the housing issue in cities such as Auckland was also questionable, Ms O'Sullivan said. "
The Auckland Council set a target of building 70 per cent of the city's growth within the existing [urban] city limits for the next 30 years. And that's created some pressure points. You see community groups opposed to intensive developments in their area, and yet people aren't that interested in living in intense housing developments a long way from the city."
11. Todays Mortgage Rates as atJune 27th 2012
The big news yesterday was the announcement of our new RBNZ governor, If you don't know what's happened read this story.On another note: Hubble and trouble, is there really a housing bubble? If I had my way, the term "housing bubble" would be expunged from the Kiwi lexicon. Read On
12. Todays Mortgage Rates as at June 26th 2012
We have more on whether this is time to fix your home loan rate here. To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
13. Todays Mortgage Rates as at June 20th 2012.
Wednesday, June 20th, 6:01AM Add your comment .In the absence of any news on home loan rates we can present you with Olly Newland's latest views on house prices. To see what he has to say click here. To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
Congratulations to the Lochores Team at the Professional's 2012 Awards
Lochores Real Estate Team at their latest Awards Evening at Sky City showing the total money raised by the Professionals Group for Child Cancer of $3,500,000.00 as part of their commitment to the community.
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| Chris Gemmell receiving the No 1 Salesperson Professional's award in New Zealand for 2012. Top 2% sales/units in New Zealand. 250 Million dollar club and part of the top sales team at Lochores Professional's for 2012. | Chris Gemmell's high Performance Sales Team with Jason Yianakis receivng the Top Sales Team award for 2012 |
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| Andrew and Robert Lochore receiving their awards for the top 10% sales in New Zealand and 20% units in New Zealand | Stephen Wells and Martin Van Praseuth receiving their awards for the top 2% sales in New Zealand and the top 10% units in New Zealand |
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| Jack and Mark Gibb Receiving their awards for the top 2% sales/units in New Zealand. | John and Evelyn Norton receiving their award for the top 20% sales/units in New Zealand |
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| Pat Lovell receiving her award for the top 20% sales in New Zealand - 10 Million Dollar Club. | Rachel Hornsby wins the Individual Excellence in Property Management. |
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The Lochores Property Management Team winning the "Excellence in Property Management Award" in New Zealand for 2012. From left Mike Henderson (General Manager of the Professionals Group), Kevin Liebig, Pauline Matich, Rachel Hornsby, Aaron Tomlin, Judy Pearsey and Michael Lochore (Manager of Lochores Property Management). |
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14. Be realistic with your expectations.
It's a good sign when realism reigns in the real estate market. People are continuing to show caution – properties that are failing to sell are most often unrealistically priced, while those being presented by more pragmatic owners frequently attract multiple offers. Lochore's office manager Pauline Horne quotes a very recent example of a well-priced and marketed 1940s weatherboard home having five separate offers tabled. "That kind of competition only happens when vendors are practical and their expectations are realistic," Pauline says. She says the more sensational 'fear of missing out' stories about property sales in Grey Lynn and Western Springs have the potential to raise vendor expectations, but locals appear to be keeping their heads. Birkenhead, Glenfield and neighbouring suburbs are selling faster on average than wider Auckland and national averages. According to the latest Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) statistics, 29 days is the average 'days to sell' in this area. Two weeks ago the Institute posed the question, 'Are we there yet?' in reference to speculation of another property market boom. At the same time Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard is advising Parliament that there is little sign of price inflation. It's too early to tell if the market will hit 'boom' levels, but according to REINZ 60 per cent more houses would need to sell before we could consider it...A complete copy of this article is available here
15. Todays Mortgage Rates as at June 14th 2012.
Reserve Bank governor Alan Bollard had held his official cash rate (OCR) steady but says the economic outlook has weakened. Full statement here. We will have a further story later this morning.To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
16. Banks go to war on Mortgages. (New Zealand Herald 31 May 2012)
Mortgage rates have hit rock bottom as banks offer thousands of dollars in cash and slash advertised interest rates in response to pressure from home-buyers for deals. read more here
17. Todays Mortgage Rates as at 29th May 2012.
Yes a great rhetorical question to start the day. We have what BNZ calls "an amazing, perhaps unprecedented, situation in the markets at the moment." Traders are betting on the OCR falling 44 basis points over the coming months, while the local analysts are, to a person, picking the next move to be a hike, albeit not until early next year. Then we have Westpac saying "We believe the optimal strategy will be to take a fixed rate well before the Reserve Bank begins increasing the OCR in response to the inflationary pressures of the Christchurch rebuild." With the recent rumblings down south that rebuild may continue to be on hold. To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
18. Sales Conference.
Its that time of the year again. The Professionals Salespersons Conference will be held at the Conference Sky City Wednesday 30th & Thursday 31stMay. You will be able to pick up your packs and lanyards early as we will be at the registration desk ready to greet you. This will allow you to be ready to go for the Conference opening at 10.30am. Don’t forget you can redeem your Skycity parking ticket at our registration desk for $15 cash. This will cover all days providing you don’t take your car out of the park (then you will need to purchase another $15 ticket).
19. New appointment
We are very pleased to announce that Sandy Warrington will be joining the Chris Gemmell high performance team from Monday. For those of you who do not know, Sandy has previously been an Office Manager for a large automotive business and in her first year of real estate achieved “Rookie of the Year”. She has worked at Professionals office in Manurewa (Lovegrove Realty) and then saw the light and decided to bring her family to the Shore, living locally in Glenfield, with her husband and two girls . A great decision ! Sandy has a farm area in the Windy Ridge area where she lives and will be actively selling and helping with open homes. Please join with me in wishing her all the best for her new job.
20. More news on mortgage rates.
SBS continues its aggresive home loan pricing strategy; this time offering 4.99% for six months. This mimics Kiwibank's move, and like the state-owned bank has special terms and conditions. ANZ National Bank has kicked off the week with more cuts to home loan rates. The main feature is in the two year term where it is now offering the lowest carded standard rate of 5.49%. One basis point lower than TSB. Most of the other banks are offering a 5.55% rate. Also the new 18 month rate is 5.55% is equal with Westpac and only bettered by BNZ Classic on 5.10%. To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
21. Todays mortgage Rates as at 21st May 2012.
Last week was full on with cuts to home loan rates and looking at what's happening in wholesale markets there could be further cuts this week. To view these latest rate changes and more click here. Click here to graph comparisons.
22. Todays mortgage Rates as at 15 May 2012.
More cuts to home loan rates today. The latest to move are TSB and the ASB. You can check, compare and sort rates here to see which banks are offering borrowers the best deals. For more on what's happening read this report. To view these latest rate changes and more click here
23. Payback time for the faithful.
For some time a recurring theme in this column has been the growing shortage of housing in Auckland, and the impact this will have on house prices and rents. Now it has come home to roost – prices are on the up and will keep on going up. So it's an exciting time to be in real estate. It's also a reassuring time for home owners, and payback time for the faithful who have stuck with their property investments. But for those seeking relief in the housing shortage, there appears to be little in sight. There is no new building of any real significance, and when the building industry does take off, there will be a shortage of materials because no-one is holding the stocks that will be required. The old adage of supply and demand will produce rising costs in materials and labour. Why haven't the economists been predicting this for the last two to three years? And on a similar vein, where are our 'city fathers' with vision?'
A complete copy of this article is available here.
