Investment in New Zealand’s commercial property market has grown over 2026, driven by higher transaction values and growing offshore interest, according to the latest report from the Colliers Research & Economics team.
The analysis from Colliers draws on MSCI Real Capital Analytics sales data covering transactions of $6 million and above across office, industrial, retail, data centre, and hotel properties.
Sales of $751 million were recorded in the third quarter of 2026, up 34.6 per cent from the same period last year. This lifted the sales volume over the past four quarters to approximately $2.96 billion, an increase of 23 per cent year-on-year.
The latest result marks a significant recovery from the lower levels of activity recorded through 2023 and 2024, with rolling annual sales more than double the $1.22 billion recorded in the year to September 2024.
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However, volumes remain below previous market peaks, including the $3.43 billion recorded in the 12 months to June 2019.
Hamish Fitchett, National Director of Research & Economics at Colliers, says despite the improvement in sales value, transaction numbers remain comparatively subdued.
“Twenty high-value commercial properties transacted nationally during the third quarter of 2026, compared with 32 a year earlier, while the latest four quarters recorded 156 transactions, down 6.6 per cent year-on-year,” Fitchett says.
“Over the same period, sales value increased by 23 per cent. This shows how the recent recovery has been supported by a smaller number of higher-value transactions, rather than an increase in the overall number of sales.”
The mix of property types provides further insight into where activity has been concentrated, as highlighted in Colliers’ New Zealand Research Report for November.
The office sector led sales by value in the year to date, recording approximately $630 million across 15 properties, followed by the industrial sector at $575 million of deals across 57 properties.
Retail recorded a further $479 million of transactions, while hotel sales totalled $411 million.
Several major deals also contributed to the sector totals, including the sale of a 50 per cent interest in PwC Tower in September, and the $308.36 million sale of a 49 per cent interest in Westfield Albany.
At a regional level, the improvement in investment activity has been particularly evident in Auckland. Rolling 12-month sales volumes reached approximately $2.18 billion in September, up from $1.6 billion a year earlier and marking the region's strongest performance since 2018.
Investment activity outside Auckland remained more measured. Rolling 12-month sales volumes in September totalled approximately $389 million in the South Island, $354 million across the rest of the North Island, and $160 million in Wellington.
This regional activity demonstrates that while overall volumes are lower outside Auckland, buyers are still actively targeting quality retail, office, and industrial assets.
Pritika Chand, Senior Research Analyst at Colliers, says alongside the recovery in transaction volumes, the profile of buyers has shifted notably towards offshore capital.
Cross-border investors accounted for 66.9 per cent of acquisition value in 2026 YTD, up from 50.1 per cent in 2025 and 44.1 per cent in 2024.
“The growing offshore presence has reshaped the balance between cross-border and domestic buyers, and although private investors remain the largest local buying group, their share of activity has declined in the past three years,” Chand says.
“Among offshore investors, Hong Kong has emerged as the largest investor, while Singaporean and Canadian buyers have been active.
“The strong international demand in New Zealand’s commercial property market is expected to continue into the coming year. Interest rates in New Zealand remain lower than many of our peer economies, such as Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
"This is placing downward pressure on the New Zealand dollar, which in turn makes New Zealand a relatively cost-effective market for offshore investors to enter.”
- Supplied by Colliers
