House Prices/Experiences

[Super_BQ]

I did look up the CV value on the city council's website and it is ~100k less than asking price.

That's a good start. I would start with what the city rates are and then dissect each house along the street by size, # of rooms, north facing, age, etc. Then compare it to the house you are looking at. Remember that it's quite common for real estate agents to mark up the house far more than what it's really worth. $100K more is quite common for a $600K house (20% gross amount of city rate valuation).

Another advice is to never fall in love in any particular house because you could end up paying too much.

[Mickfin]

Thanks. I just used google real estate to look up every house for sale in the area and then crossed that with the council rates and the average is $19,600 asking price over council value.
There is one wild listing at $70k over cv but it has been on the market for almost a year. I think I see a pattern.
I think I will go back to the agent and ask for a list of sales in the area to see sold prices and then cross those with cv.

[Kea]

You can also buy a list of recent sales from qv.co.nz or zoodle.co.nz. It can get pricey but will be unbiased and it's worth $20 when you are potentially spending so much.

[Dell]

Thanks. I just used google real estate to look up every house for sale in the area and then crossed that with the council rates and the average is $19,600 asking price over council value.
There is one wild listing at $70k over cv but it has been on the market for almost a year. I think I see a pattern.
I think I will go back to the agent and ask for a list of sales in the area to see sold prices and then cross those with cv.

I googled 'google real estate' and couldn't find anything that gives info on houses for sale....other than regular real estate websites. Could you please give me more info on this? Thanks.

Oops - I posted to soon. Found it! Thanks for this info.

[magcats]

Thanks. I just used google real estate to look up every house for sale in the area and then crossed that with the council rates and the average is $19,600 asking price over council value.
There is one wild listing at $70k over cv but it has been on the market for almost a year. I think I see a pattern.
I think I will go back to the agent and ask for a list of sales in the area to see sold prices and then cross those with cv.

Good luck Mickfin! Hope you can find your "dream house" without being led astray! Keep us posted on the results!

[gypsy]

I had the same problem when looking to buy in 2001. Having never been to Auckland before I selected Mission Bay from a map of Auckland. Then from Spain I searched on the internet www.realestate.co.nz & www.open2view.com (Alas www.trademe.co.nz did not have property listings back then) but from these sites I made a spreadsheet with low & high prices of 3 bedroom houses etc. On arriving in Auckland I met with a wonderful agent from Barfoot Thomson Mission Bay who devoted 2 full days to me showing me not only her listings but listings from other agencies as well. She also gave me a list of recent sales in the area complete with addresses so I could see for myself. From this information a picture started to emerge. If you go from one suburb to another it is like comparing apples with pears. Best to know your budget & look at an area you like within that budget.
There were many properties with PBN (price by negotiation) Tender (you put your bid in an envelope & it's opened on a certain date selling to the highest bid) I steered clear of these preferring to see listed price instead. As for RV (rateable value) or CV (council valuation) you can actually look up an address in the Auckland City Council & it will tell you land size, building size, council rates & value. However these cannot always be relied on as they are done every 4 years. In my case I bought the house for pretty close to CV in May 2001 however 12 months later the house had increased in value by 35% thanks to 9/11 but the CV remained the same & was not increased until the last CV issued (2008) when it shot up by 100% to what realistically houses in our area were selling for. Today our house would sell fast for more than the CV because land in the area (if you can find any)is selling for almost that.
As for leaky homes I was fortunate that whilst I was house hunting the NZ Herald published a story on leaky homes which alerted me to the problem. At the time I saw many homes I suspected were leaky, they had a certain odor. I never buy houses in summer- Because they all look great in the sun, but a different story in the middle of winter especially after a lot of rain when any moisture problems will be evident. People went on buying these leaky homes for several years in spite of articles about the problems WHY Because they like their modern Mediterranean appearance which is totally unsuitable to NZ climate.
I personally know of 2 families who have spent in each case over $200,000 trying to rectify the problems of buying leaky homes.
In my case I bought an old solid home built in 1931 by an English Master Builder it's external walls are double solid brick, internal walls are also brick. We had insulation fitted in ceiling cavity as well as underfloor & gas ducted central heating from floor vents. Result is a very comfortable warm dry home.
My best advice do you homework, narrow it down to a certain area & research it thoroughly, find a good agent & past sales should not be a mystery nor should honesty about the current market. After all if you find a good agent & trust them you will refer them to others so it is in their best interest to be honest with you especially if you are not familiar with an area or NZ real estate.

[gypsy]

This is a picture of a solid house & our street

[ralf-nz]

Thanks. I just used google real estate to look up every house for sale in the area and then crossed that with the council rates and the average is $19,600 asking price over council value.
There is one wild listing at $70k over cv but it has been on the market for almost a year. I think I see a pattern.
I think I will go back to the agent and ask for a list of sales in the area to see sold prices and then cross those with cv.

I suppose they are not adding a certain amount but certain percentage.

[eternalkiwi]

One website mentioned here previously that provides details of properties for sale and recent sales is http://www.infolink.harcourts.net/googlemapnz.htm.

It is managed by Harcourts, though includes some properties from other agencies.

Shawn

[gypsy]

If you take a look at properties listed for sale on Trademe you will see the date they were first listed. Looking at Napier some have been listed several months which would indicate to me they are expecting too much or the house has problems. Nothing like doing your homework, sticking to am area you like & comparing houses for sale which should give you a feel for prices. Avoid Leaseholds which may be cheap but cannot sell easily & ground rent increases.