‘Stay Focused on Your Property Goal’ Says CEO

NEWS RELEASE

‘Stay Focused on Your Property Goal’ Says Harcourts CEO
For Release: 30 April 2007

Hot on the heels of a record month in February 2007, Harcourts New Zealand achieved a new milestone in March for the value of written sales. The just over $1.2 billion worth of written sales was the result of Harcourts’ five regions (Northern which includes Auckland; Central North Island; Wellington which includes as far as Taranaki and Hawkes Bay; Christchurch City; and the rest of the South Island) also achieving regional bests across the board.

Harcourts New Zealand CEO, Bryan Thomson, noted that while there was huge focus on the property market with attempts to control the activity, the fact remained that “people still have a strong desire to own their own homes, and are prepared to put their money where their mouth is to achieve home ownership.”

Referring to the record March 2007 activity in the latest issue of Harcourts MarketWatch newsletter, Mr Thomson said “The drivers of this performance are very simply, supply and demand. Due to the strong employment market, wage growth and positive immigration, buyers are confident about making longer term investment decisions when it comes to their housing requirements.” He added that the lower volume of new listings becoming available added to the pressure buyers were under resulting in “a recipe for competition in the market which obviously leads to positive price movements.”

Despite the Reserve Bank announcing an increase in the Official Cash Rate (OCR) by 25 basis points to 7.75 percent late last week, Mr Thomson encouraged buyers to remain focused on their goals to ensure they didn’t miss great opportunities which always exist. “Define what you actually need, what features you can’t do without, fully understand your budget, then find the best property you can based on your criteria.”

For those selling property, Mr Thomson concluded “now more than ever, you must hire the consultant and company who prove they have the best ability to maximize competition and thus price for your property. Don’t be misled by those who offer the ‘I’m cheaper’ pitch as we all know cheapest and best are seldom happy bedfellows. Focus on knowledge, value and end results to achieve your next step in life.”

ENDS

See... Harcourts MarketWatch April 2007 (PDF)

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