Auckland Council’s decision to again delay the release of the new council valuations (CVs), this time to March next year, means buyers and sellers in city can expect more properties selling for well above CV.
Two recent sales show how far the market has moved since 2017, when the last round of CVs were done.
A stylishly-renovated four-bedroom home on Woodford Road, in Mount Eden, sold under the hammer for $6.35 million, almost $4m or 159% above its CV of $2.45m, while a sprawling modern four-bedroom waterfront property on Karemoana Drive, in Te Atatu Peninsula fetched $4.1m, $1.595m (63%) above CV.
Auckland Council has admitted that the audit process for the new CVs had found inconsistencies in the data, including issues with land values, rear site properties and the impact of the Unitary Plan zonings.
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However, separate to these specific issues will be the market surge in Auckland since the valuations were made in July.
Despite signs that the house price growth is slowing in some parts of the country, Auckland's housing market is still running hot, with the city's average property value rising 12% ($170,000) in the last six months to $1.537m.
OneRoof analysis of settled sales data for last three months shows Auckland properties have been selling on average 37% above CV.
A luxury house on Karemoana Drive, in Te Atatu Peninsula, Auckland , sold before auction for $4.1m, $1.595m above CV. Photo / Supplied
Ray White agent Ash Nand, who sold Karemoana Drive, told OneRoof that Auckland buyers and sellers in the current market rarely paid attention to CVs.
“The buyer of Karemoana Drive had been looking for a waterfront home for more than five years and he made an offer to stop it going to auction.
“The CV didn’t factor at all in people’s expectations. Even though the house is 15 years old, it's luxurious, with all new appliances and meticulously maintained.”
Nand added that buyers knew that a neighbouring piece of land that’s around the same size as Karemoana Drive, but not in as good a location, had sold recently for $2.5m.
“They just put two and two together. Today, to build this house you’d be looking at $8000 per square metre, and that’s not counting the time, consents and all that. You’re much better buying something that’s done,” he said.
Nand also noted that Te Atatu Peninsula prices are now being bumped by buyers moving west from central Auckland suburbs like Epsom, attracted to the sea-side village location and cycling proximity to the city.
56 Arney Crescent, in Remuera, is for sale for $8m. Photo / Supplied
“It’s the same with a property we sold on Redoubt Road, Manukau, which went for $3.8m. It had a CV of $2.25m, but there were seven bidders wanting it. You get 1.55 hectares, a big house, and buyers coming out from the city still see this as great value.”
The $6.35m price of the house on Woodford Road shows how much of budget buyers need to have to secure a home in Auckland’s inner-city suburbs.
The 269sqm house on a 817sqm site came with a pool and was marketed by Bayleys agent Edward Pack. It last sold in 2007 for $1.687m but had been renovated to “masterpiece” level, Pack said.
And Terry King, of Remuera Register and Ray White Remuera, who is marketing a luxury property on Arney Crescent with an $8m asking price, nearly $3m above CV, told OneRoof: “People who have to look at the CV [as a price guide] are not going to be able to afford it.”
