House buyers 'in the driver's seat' - QV

Now is not a great time to sell a house if you don't really have to, Quotable Value (QV) says.

National spokesperson Simon Petersen says some buyers are making "cheeky" offers and the market is likely to be flat - at best - for the next little while. QV's latest data puts the average New Zealand home value at $892,580, down 1.9 percent from the start of the year and 0.9 percent below where it was a year earlier.

Petersen said the first month of spring had brought little evidence that a broad-based recovery was imminent.

"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," he said.

"Until the election, you'd be a brave man to bet on anything except flat, flat to gently falling... we see buyers making increasingly cheeky offers.

"It's something I've heard from valuers across the country. Even personally, anecdotally, my in-laws are selling a home and the offers coming in are sometimes kind of ludicrous. People who are in a position to buy at the moment have all the cards right now and have the upper hand."

He said buyers had a lot of choice and little urgency. Sellers who could put off selling might find it was a good idea, he said.

"In spring, we typically see a lot more homes come on to the market, traditionally it is the time to sell... it just means more competition. It could result in that slow reduction in prices maybe even escalating a little."

Rising interest rates might also make people more cautious, he said, and the cost of living was putting a limit on what people could afford to pay.

Only three main urban areas did not see prices fall in the quarter. Tauranga was up 0.1 percent, Invercargill 0.5 percent and Queenstown 3.1 percent. Prices rose in Southland and Otago, too. Values fell 3.2 percent in Gisborne, 3 percent in Wellington and Whangārei and 2.5 percent in Auckland.

"The economic recovery remains uneven and we're seeing that reflected in property values. There really isn't one consistent housing market right now - it's still a patchwork of pluses and minuses, although mostly minuses.

"Local economic conditions are playing a bigger role in how different housing markets are performing. Some regions are benefiting from stronger employment and primary-sector activity, while others are still dealing with weaker confidence, higher stock levels and more cautious buyer sentiment."

Petersen said, until buyers felt more need or confidence to act, vendors would have to "compete pretty hard" for their attention.