Wellingtonians 🏠 Forget the Property Market Narrative!

Forget the Narrative…Here’s What’s Actually Happening!  We hope 2025 is fabulous for you and for those whose plans involve property we’re here to help make sure it is!Let me tell you the market has opened for business…which it usually does from about mid-January when most of us try to squeeze back into our work clothes hoping they still fit.We’ve been having lots of property conversations this week and I was struck by someone yesterday saying ‘we’re not moving as the market is really not good’ and then telling me a story about someone last year who sold and ‘got a really low price and was shocked and so disappointed’. I was struck by it as it’s just not what we have experienced.  I’m sure it happened…but it didn’t need to!So let’s kick-off with the coal-face facts and a few tips! Here’s what our last sale of 2024 looked like:

• 40 groups of buyers through - so there are buyers…right?

• 4 offers and a sale $10,000 over asking price and above vendor expectation – so it sold and for a good price…right?

• Sale price was $58,750 (6.7%) above the combined average of four internet property price estimate websites the public use – I’ve said it before…forget website estimates for your house value and use recent sales instead…they are rubbish!  This example was also an even bigger gap in reality as internet estimates are ‘sight unseen’ and this property was original and ready for major renovation.

Here’s how 2025 is opening:

• A large 4-Bedroom property new to market had 14 buyer groups through this week. 

• Interest rates are lower and set to fall further and buyers are indeed out shopping.

  
  

New RV’s will be out for Wellington in February 2025:

• RV’s are not sale prices, they’re just value estimate for rates…BUT historically people used to reference them which is a hard habit to break and the 2021 ones are massively over-inflated, leading people comparing to them to feel things are bad.

• The re-set in February may help some people get beyond the post-November 2021 blues when the market was unprecedentedly ‘mad hot’ and had a ridiculous and unexpected steep climb resulting from government money printing and loose monetary policy settings, in the pandemic, and public FOMO and frenzy - Wellington values shot up by about 28% in 2021, for no real reason than this stuff, and then of-course prices and the market spent a painful 18 months to 2 years falling back down to return eventually to a pretty stable market and in crude terms being somewhere back where it all started.  A rollercoaster for sure…and not one we will be seeing again!  If you are waiting prices to go back to what the press calls the ‘peak’ you’ll be waiting for an extraordinary long time.

Stable transacting with no withdrawals or non-sales  Most agree the market is pretty stable now, prices not racing up or plummeting..and in fact going nowhere startling really.Now, while people have all sorts of different experiences out there, and it’s normal that  some properties don’t sell and withdraw from market, our clients have not had any properties withdraw or not sell in the last 2 years. We think and observe that:

• Sellers are often not being given realistic market appraisals evidenced by relevant sales on day one, and their expectations can end up being on another planet and set for disappointment.  Don’t start without one!

• Some sellers are too optimistic on price (READ…they have a WISH PRICE which is fine), believing their property is worth much more than any objective measure shows.  It’s fine to hope and dream, as we all do, but having expectations grounded in reality is more helpful when you embark on selling.  And too often they’re then paired-up with agents who aren’t up to the task of confronting this with honesty, and managing conflict, and who are instead avoiding or letting the situation run with a ‘let’s see…fingers crossed attitude’.  Plot spoiler… seller doesn’t sell and withdraws the property, or if they sell it takes way too long, they may switch agents and companies along the way, and if they do eventually sell they feel disappointed.  Also to note, the longer you linger on market the more likely it is you will sell below market.  If you’re agent isn’t telling you the truth on day one or you are not being skeptical and asking for it…it may not end well for your sale or stress levels.

• Experience matters much more in this market than it did in the super hot market of recent years.  What still works is and hasn’t changed though is:

  • Preparing properties really well helps them sell faster and for more – have a plan and get experienced advice on how to get your place ready and set-up! 

  • Real-time written market feedback and lots of it is vital for understanding market value and changes needed – make sure you’re agent will be following up all buyers for a quality conversation and giving you written detailed feedback reports.

  • An agent who is a highly skilled negotiator will always do better financially for you than an agent who is cheap – hire on capability and experience not fees!

  • Properties may go quickly at a tender or auction though often they may need extra phases to get to SOLD – hire for knowledge of ‘what comes next’ and ‘what needs to be done strategy-wise’ to get to a good result!

Is 2025 a year where you’ll make a move?  If you’d like to know what your property is worth now or about what you should do to prepare it get in touch for quick 15-min catch-up that will give you free valuable advice and tips to start on the right path! (leonie.snook@harcourts.co.nz - 027 518 0008).   No fuss, no sales pitch, just service!