Bay house values well below peak | Hawkes Bay News | Local News in Hawkes Bay

Mortgagee sales have contributed to a fall in house values in Hawke's Bay, says Quotable Value.

Its Residential Price Index for October showed property values in Napier were 1.5 per cent lower than a year ago and 7.4 per cent below the peak of December 2007.

Hastings values were 2.8 per cent less than a year ago and remained 9 per cent below the peak of April 2008.

QV Hawke's Bay manager Bevan Pickett said overall the Hawke's Bay property market remained subdued with low levels of activity.

"Potential buyers remain tentative and calculated when making a property decision with little willingness to commit," he said.

"There still appears to be a clear gap between the expectations of vendors and purchasers. There is still an element of financial pressure with many vendors and mortgagee sales are not uncommon.

"Our best advice to buyers and sellers is to obtain a current market valuation if they are uncertain of where a property's value sits in the market," Mr Pickett said.

The Residential Price Index is calculated using sales data from the three months leading up to the month being reported. It is not the same as the average sales price, which fluctuates in line with the mix of properties selling in upper or lower price brackets.

The average sales price in October for Hastings was $295,707. Napier's was $308,971.

QV's triennial Napier rates valuation has devalued Napier properties by an average of 3.4 per cent.

Some residential properties in Greenmeadows West have seen land increases in the vicinity of 15 per cent, while most properties on Napier Hill have had their land value decreased by 10 per cent.

Typical movements are 5 per cent decreases for most residential properties. The values of some apartments have decreased significantly more than the average.

On the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand's website, Hawke's Bay's mean asking price increased 3.6 per cent to $338,835 in October, compared to the previous three months.