The number of sales of dwellings including apartments in Waitakere City for August was 284. There were 11 sections sold. The median selling price was $762,000. The average days to sell was 37.

Capital Gains August 2012 – 2017 Median Prices

Green Bay            64.3%

New Lynn             86.7%

Royal Heights     109.2%

The number of sales of homes in Waitakere City for August was 284, this was up from last month. Prices also increased by 3.8% over July prices. These figures reflect increased prices and sales numbers across Auckland as a whole. Sellers are not willing it seems to sell below the prices they saw similar properties to theirs sell for a few months ago. There is little doubt that the shortage of houses is getting worse in Auckland as demand is exceeding the rate of building new ones.

On that basis prices would be expected to rise. Factors likely to hinder price rises however are (1) the tight lending requirements from banks mainly  because of the LVR (loan to value ratio) restrictions imposed by the reserve bank. (2) A change of government as a Labour led government would:

A. Restrict immigration which would reduce demand and slow many sectors of the economy such as hospitality and horticulture which are already short of workers and rely heavily on temporary immigrants / seasonal workers.

B. It is clear that there are not enough construction trades workers and immigration restrictions would prevent more houses been built.

C. Capital gains tax rise on any rental house purchase would mean less buyers for rental properties so prices would be inclined to fall. At the same time a sever shortage of rental properties could ensue. This rental shortage would tend to drive up rents but the government could well put restrictions on rent increases.

D. It looks likely that when a deceased estate property is sold it would not then be classed as a family home and so could be subject to capital gains tax. This is what people are calling an inheritance tax. If that became the case a properties market value would be less. Nothing is certain in life and this is especially true of the 2017 general election.

Do you want to know the value of your property? Its probably worth more than you think. Contact me for a free no obligation value update.

Best wishes,

John Goodrum

Licensee Agent REAA 2008

021945140

thelegendofthewest@gmail.com

Welcome to the thirty-second edition of the West Auckland monthly Residential Landlords Newsletter.

I am a landlord myself and have been for over 30 years. I currently own rental properties in South Auckland, the North Shore and of course West Auckland. Being a high preforming Real Estate Agent (top 1% in New Zealand) for over 26 years and always working in West Auckland I know the real estate market and the rental market very well.  

In this and future newsletters I hope to provide ongoing up to date information relevant to landlords who own rental properties in West Auckland.  

Regular features will include: 

• Current sale prices
• Current mortgage rates
• Current rents
• A monthly suburb spotlight review
• A relevant feature article each month
  

 Source REINZ

Source – J Goodrum – Internet search

Source NZ Government building & housing

Source NZ department of statistics

 Insurance of Rental Properties

As well as having insurance for the building it is often desirable for a landlord to have landlords insurance. This typically covers such things as loss of rent, intentional or malicious damage, vandalism or theft by a tenant or their guests. It also covers illegal drug use by tenants or their guests causing the need to test for drugs and the cost to decontaminate the property.

Insurance policies do have limits on the amount that will be paid for such events. Typically loss of rent would be 8 weeks (less any rent paid in advance or any bond held). For illegal drug use and decontamination a typical limit would be $30,000. In order to qualify for a claim for many of the above events the landlord must fulfil a number of conditions, such as: 

1. Take care and check references when selecting a tenant.
2. The property must not be empty for longer than 60 days.
3. Have a written legal tenancy agreement.
4. Collect at least 2 weeks bond and register it with tenancy services.
5. Collect at least 2 weeks rent in advance.
6. Keep photographs and a written inspection report at the start of the tenancy.
7. Notify the tenant in writing if the rent becomes 7 days in arrears.
8. Personally deliver a second letter to the tenant when the rent is 14 days in arears.
9. Apply to the tenancy tribunal for a termination order when the rent is 21 days in arears.
10. Inspect the property at the beginning and end of a tenancy.
11. Conduct 3 monthly internal and external inspections on the property and keep written records / photographs. 

Failure to meet the above conditions could invalidate any claim on insurance. For landlords having their properties managed by professional property managers I would strongly suggest emailing them a copy of the insurance conditions and getting a written reply that they will manage your property in such a way that all of these conditions are met. 

For landlords managing their own rentals ensure you follow the conditions of the insurance or do not be surprised if you find your claim rejected. 

Until next time,

Best wishes,

John Goodrum

Licensee Agent REAA 2008
021945140

thelegendofthewest@gmail.com
09 838 8895

The number of sales in June on the Peninsula was 23 and the median selling price was $953,000. The average days to sell was 30. There were 8 sales over $1,000,000. The highest value sale was 57 Kervil Ave at $2,560,000.

6 Street Spotlight

Average Rent for Te Atatu Peninsula: 1st January – 30th June 2017

Did You Know?
The highest value of sales on the Peninsula in the past 10 years was $37,085,500 (29 sales) which was in June 2016 – last year.

Quote of the month:
Top 10 things to do when selling your home, 1# call John Goodrum, I will handle the other 9.

Until next time,

Best wishes,

John Goodrum
021945140
thelegendofthewest@gmail.com

The number of sales of dwellings including apartments in Waitakere City for June was 256. There were 94 sections sold. The median selling price was $776,000 and the average days to sell was 33.

Capital Gains June 2012 – 2017 Median Prices 

Ranui                 121.1%

Sunnyvale          90.6%

Massey               99.9%

The number of property sales in Waitakere City has fallen to 256. There has only been 2 June months with lower sales numbers in the last 20 years, which where June 2008 and 2010.

It is now 10 months since the 40% LVR was introduced and there are no signs of the market speeding up again at the moment. The uncertainty caused by the coming general election in September will certainly be a contributing factor.

 With net migration still running at record levels (close to 73,000) and a big shortage of homes in Auckland plus builders and related trades shortage it seems that prices will begin to rise again but probably not until after the
general election.

Do you want to know the value of your property? Its probably worth more than you think. Contact me for a free no obligation value update.

Best wishes,

John Goodrum

Licensee Agent REAA 2008

021945140

thelegendofthewest@gmail.com

The number of sales of dwellings including apartments in Waitakere City for October was 270. There were 7 sections sold. The median selling price in October was $797,000. The average days to sell was 32.

Capital Gains September 2011 – 2016 Median Prices

Glendene                 102.0%

Henderson              143.0%

West Harbour         95.3%

The reserve bank reduced the official cash rate (OCR) on October the 10th to a
record low of 1.75% with a reduction of 0.25%. Despite this trading banks have not dropped their mortgage rates. These banks say more of their funds are sourced from overseas where borrowing costs have increased.

As expected the price of homes in West Auckland (and Auckland as a whole) increased last month. This follows the same trend as earlier changes to the LVR (loan to value ratios) by the reserve bank. Prices slowed after the introduction of the 20% LVR and then increased, same trend when the 30% LVR was introduced for investors and again when the 40% LVR was introduced.

Markets are primarily dictated by supply and demand. LVR restrictions attempt to
lower demand but people need houses to live in and investors prefer to invest in
rentals (as opposed to about 3.5% PA for a bank deposit) so such restrictions are going to have no more than a short temporary effect.

Supply is low—there is a big shortage of houses and it will take years to build enough to satisfy the demand, so prices can be expected to keep rising.

Do you want to know the value of your property? Its probably worth more than you think. Contact me for a free no obligation value update.

Best wishes,

John Goodrum

Licensee Agent REAA 2008

021945140

thelegendofthewest@gmail.com

The number of sales in October on the Peninsula was 19 and the
median selling price was $944,100. The average days to sell was 29. There were 9 sales over $1,000,000. The highest sale price was 5 Capstan Court at $2,000,000.

6 Street Spotlight

Average Rent for Te Atatu Peninsula: 1st May – 31st October 2016

Did You Know?  

In 1855 all of Te Atatu Peninsula plus a large area of Henderson including Lincoln Road were brought from the crown for 2,377 pounds and 15 shillings sterling. The purchasers were Henderson and McFarlane.

Quote of the month:

If a cluttered desk indicates a cluttered mind, what does an empty desk indicate? – Albert Einstein.

Until next time,

Best wishes,

John

• Elite status is the highest achievement award in the company- usually less than 50 out of around 2000 sales people achieve this standard each year

With the NZ economy preforming even better than the predicted 3.5 – 4.0% growth (some even suggest 6% this year) the reserve bank is clearly worried about future inflation which could cause havoc to the living standards of all New Zealanders.

As a result we have see the second rise of 0.25% in the official cash rate (OCR). While everyone with a mortgage hates rises in the OCR (which means the mortgage lending rates increase), it is essential that inflation is controlled.

I personally can remember mortgage rates of 23%! The price of everything you brought seemed to go up just about every week. It would be a tragedy for New Zealand if anything like this happened again. It took the country many, many years and a lot of pain and unemployment to get out of the mess. Lets just hope the good times continue to roll and the reserve bank governor does not over do it and slow the growth in our economy which means plentiful employment and rising living standards.

What will happen to the house prices in Auckland? I strongly believe they will continue to rise. There is a big shortage of houses which can not be filled quickly and there is the strongest net migration to New Zealand  for a decade.

All the OCR actions will achieve I believe is slow the price rises to a more acceptable level (to the reserve bank that is) to prevent rapid inflation. One further prediction this year – the LVR (loan to value ratio) will be relaxed again allowing 90% borrowing and bringing back more first home buyers into the market.

Best wishes,

John Goodrum
Licensee Agent REAA 2008

Last month on the Peninsula there were 17 sales. The median selling price was $695,000 and the average days to sell was 17.

The highest value sale last month was 46 Waimanu Bay Drive at $1,255,000.

6 Street spotlight

Average Rent in Te Atatu Peninsula: 1st October 2013 – 31th March 2014

Did You Know?
That Te Atatu Rugby, Football and Sports Club Inc began in 1962 -  it was known as the Te Atatu Rugby Club based at Te Atatu Park. The original colours were maroon and later were changed to maroon and white.

Quote of the month: The road to success is always under construction…Lily Tomlin

I am the Real Estate expert in Te Atatu Peninsula. If you want more information about Real Estate please phone or email me for confidential attention.

Best wishes,

John Goodrum

Office: 09 413 7910
Mobile: 021 945 140
Email: thelegendofthewest@gmail.com