The national average asking price for a property fell in December, ending a three-month streak of increases.

Trade Me Property’s Customer Director Gavin Lloyd stated that the average asking price for a New Zealand property in December was $849,550, down from $854,900 in November.

“While the average asking price has dipped, both month-on-month (-0.6%) and year-on-year (-1.7%) the declines are modest and less than what we’ve seen at the same time of year in previous years,” said Mr Lloyd.

Auckland remains the most expensive region to purchase property, with the average asking price in December at $1,047,800, down slightly from $1,053,100 in November.

Year-on-year prices have fallen $20,000 (-1.9%) in Tāmaki Makaurau.

Otago overtook the Bay of Plenty as the second most expensive region.

In December, Otago recorded an average asking price of $878,400, compared to $869,800 for the Bay.

The price increase in Otago is primarily driven by the Queenstown-Lakes and Wanaka areas, which saw month-on-month growth of 6.3% and 3.7%, respectively.

In contrast, much of the rest of the region experienced declines in asking prices.

With the exception of Tauranga (+0.9%) and the Western Bay of Plenty (+0.8%), the average asking price fell across the wider Bay of Plenty region between November and December.

Opotiki recorded a significant month-to-month decline of nearly 10%.

Demand for properties dropped considerably in December, experiencing a 30% decline, the largest decrease of 2024.

Wellington (-39%), Christchurch (-35%), and Auckland (-34%) were the most affected areas.

“We often see a seasonal impact on demand, particularly in December when Kiwis have other priorities heading into the festive season and summer holiday period. We can expect things to pick back up as buyers return to the market with renewed focus on finding a new property to call home,” Mr Lloyd said.

Nationwide, supply fell by 14% month-on-month in December but was up 17% compared to December 2023.

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