Queenstown’s property market has been given a boost by a surge in Auckland investors prepared to pay “shocking numbers” for houses there.
At an auction last Friday, a four-bedroom house at 6 Crawford Place, in Lake Hayes Estate, sold for $2.306 million - $471,000 above the reserve and a new price record for the neighbourhood.
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The house, which was listed with Bayleys agents Donna Harris and Gessica Veras, had only been on the market for nine days, and had received a pre-auction offer of $1.835 million.
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Four buyers – three of whom were locals - competed to secure the new-build home, making 110 bids in total. The winning bid was from an Auckland investor who has not set foot on the property and had only seen via a Face Time video call.
The house was built in 2015 and sits on a 5826sqm freehold section near walking and cycling tracks. It boasts modern fixtures and fittings and an outdoor pool and has a 2017 rating valuation of $1.54 million.
Harris said the sale price was a “shocking number”, adding: “We’ve seen a real spike in Auckland investors shopping around in the last two months.
“The rental prices are still 20 per cent down but there’s still yield to be made long-term later down the track once the boarders open eventually rental prices will go back up.”
There were 110 bids made on 6 Crawford Place. Photo / Supplied
Bayleys Frankton branch owner Stacy Coburn told OneRoof there was sense of urgency among buyers on the hunt for stock in Queenstown.
There was a significant increase in demand from investors, many from Auckland. “To Auckland buyers, we still represent a good buy and the market has been so hot for them for quite some time and we are just starting to see the hear with competitive bidding.”
Coburn said that because rental prices had dropped many landlords were selling up, with these properties attracting interest from local buyers looking for an affordable home.
The clearance rate at Bayleys’ Queenstown auction on Friday was 83%.
Another investment property on the block, 33 Larch Hill Place, in Queenstown, sold under the hammer for $1.57 million – more than $400,000 above its RV.
Wayne Cafe, the listing agent for the property, said it was a hot find for an investor as they would be able to build a new home next to the existing three-bedroom rental on the 984sqm section.
Harcourts Queenstown agent Kirsty Sinclair said that she had noticed that investors with finance pre-approval had been buying before the LVR rules kicked in.
“We are seeing real confidence in Queenstown market and it’s been good for the town as we’ve had a tough time since the lockdown,” she said.
33 Larch Hill Place sold under the hammer for $1.57 million. Photo / Supplied
She said that there was an uptick in interest from expat and Australian buyers in rural lifestyle properties valued at $3 million and over. “We are also seeing a lot of locals buying homes for themselves,” she added.
Coburn said that while residential sales were buoyant, commercial sales in Queenstown were flat. “Without Government support by winter, we won’t recognise this town and it will be very sad to see. We desperately need help.”
With international boarders closed, Queenstown tourism and hospitality were hit hard which reflects on commercial sales, he said.
