House sales sink to 10-year low

Property sales have sunk to their lowest September level in at least a decade, dragged down by a lack of activity in the Christchurch property market.

The REINZ monthly housing price index fell 0.3 per cent during September, and 1.3 per cent compared to the same time last year.

REINZ said 4323 residential properties sold during September, less than half the number of properties sold in September 2006, when the market was at the height of the property boom, the Real Estate Institute said.

However sales last month had shown a slight improvement when compared to the August figure of 4287, REINZ said.

The Canterbury earthquake continued to knock sales with just 396 houses sold in Canterbury/Westland during September, less than half of that recorded for the same month last year.

It is also down 227 sales, or 36 per cent, on the previous month.

In Christchurch city 237 sales were recorded during September, down from 416 in August, while in North Canterbury just four houses were sold, down from 16 in August.

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Posted: 15 Oct 2010

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