- Invercargill leads the country’s housing market, with properties selling in 31 days amid scarce listings.
- Listings fell from 380 in April to about 250, driving multiple offers from strong demand.
- Major developments are attracting investors, while Gore benefits from shrinking listings and renewed buyer activity.
The fastest housing market in New Zealand has shifted up another gear, with “unbelievably low” stock levels driving intense competition for homes in Southland.
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Real Estate Institute of New Zealand data shows Invercargill was the fastest place in the country to sell a home in the three months to August 2026, with properties taking an average of just 31 days to change hands, five days less than a year ago.
Nearby Gore was close behind at 35 days, a stark contrast to the country’s slowest markets, where homes took more than 100 days to sell. The national average was 60 days.
Ray White Invercargill business owner James McRobie said the “unbelievably low” number of properties currently for sale in the city was dictating the speed of the market right now.
Listing numbers were currently hovering around 250, down from about 380 in April.
McRobie expects there will be an influx of new listings over the next few weeks, but not enough to return volumes to normal levels.
“There’s really good demand from buyers and not enough listings to service them all,” he told OneRoof.
McRobie said a lot of properties were getting multiple offers and there was “reasonably good” bidding at auctions.
A modern four-bedroom home on Pegasus Place, in Seaward Bush, sold at auction for $1.23m after a short two-week campaign. Photo / Supplied
A block of four flats on Pomona Street, in Georgetown, drew seven offers and sold for $1.274m within days. Photo / Supplied
His agency had also reduced the length of its auction campaigns from three to two weeks in response to buyer interest. “We are finding that those buyers do come out of the woodwork quite quickly generally in that first week.”
His office recently sold a four-bedroom home on Pegasus Place, in Seaward Bush, at auction for $1.23 million after just two weekends of open homes, and an entry-level three-bedroom on Tramway Road, in Strathern, for $475,000 on the back of five offers.
“There’s good demand for everything at the moment – from $400,000 first homes right up to $1.2m homes. We just need more listings,” McRobie said.
Unlike the rest of the country, Invercargill has enjoyed strong property value growth. The $520,000 median sale price in August was 4% higher than it was in July and up 12.3% annually.
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First-home buyers are the biggest active group in the market, but out-of-town investors are also showing interest.
Harcourts Invercargill agent Carl Wilson explained: “What’s happening down here is the Data Grid’s AI Data Centre is drawing a lot of interest – that’s a two-to-three-year build and there’s an absolute shortage of properties. From an investor point of view, finding a tenant is not going to be a problem.”
Other developments in the works include Southland Silicon Materials Ltd’s silicon smelter, which is expected to employ 1400 people; Ngai Tahu Seafood Resource Ltd’s open-ocean salmon farm off Rakiura/Stewart Island, and Contact Energy’s Southland Wind Farm near Gore.
Wilson recently sold a two-bedroom do-up on Morton Street, in Georgetown, for $331,000 ($32,000 above asking price) after receiving seven offers in 10 days.
A five-bedroom property at 86 Hamilton Street, in Gore, has plenty of room for all the toys. Photo / Supplied
His Rimu Street listing was snapped up by an out-of-town investor for $575,000 after generating strong interest, while a four-flat block on Pomona Street in Georgetown sold for $1.274m after seven offers were lodged, with its $1660-a-week rental income proving a major drawcard.
Wilson said yields in Invercargill were around 6% to 8%, but some landlords were switching tack to cash in on the city’s growing short-term accommodation market. He had a client who bought a property to rent out long-term but ended up putting it on Airbnb after discovering he could triple his income.
In nearby Gore, Bayleys agent Julie Mitchell said the interest from local and out-of-town investors had given the market a push, noting that listings had shrunk from about 120 to about 60. “It’s really busy. [The return of] investors has definitely put some pressure back on the market,” she told OneRoof.
“We are just finding the town is alive and buzzing and there’s been a really good turnout at open homes.”
Mitchell said the prices in her patch were also a lot more appealing than prices in some of the major North Island centres. Entry-level for Gore was around $500,000, mid-range was between $650,000 and $700,000, and the very high end was just over $1m.
Mitchell has just listed a five-bedroom, two-bathroom property at 86 Hamilton Street and already it is proving to be “extremely popular”.
Buyers in other districts are exercising a bit more patience, with Waimate and the Thames-Coromandel currently boasting the longest median days to sell in the three-month period to the end of August, 108 and 106 respectively.
Harcourts Pauanui and Whangamatā business owner Alyce Rowe said it was no surprise that properties in the beach towns were a tough sell over winter.
“Second properties don’t tend to be a priority over winter, when kids’ sports start.”
She expected the market to speed up over spring, and pointed to some impressive properties about to hit the market.
Bayleys Coromandel director Lee Carter said it was a “two-speed market” in her patch.
Well-priced and well-presented properties were selling within four to six weeks, while other properties were sitting on the market for much longer (years in some cases) because vendors weren’t willing or able to adjust to market feedback.
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