Supply and Demand Affect Our Prices

We continue to see values going up, especially close to town. Two bedroom units have been selling like hot cakes (as long as they are within walking distance to town). The attraction for inner town living is predominantly the convenience for retirees, having Kerikeri’s cafés and restaurants and all the services at your doorstep and being able to enjoy the vibrancy of the town. From our own experience, we could add to that list the savings of time and money in commuting from rural areas, being able to enjoy the full programme of sporting, cultural and entertainment events in Kerikeri and not forgetting the beautiful and interesting walk around the bypass to the Stone Store basin and Rainbow Falls which is a regular event for both locals and visitors alike.

In the short term, “supply and demand” is the factor in price change. The short supply and high demand continue.  In the past, an Auckland buyer would displace a Kerikeri resident who would usually move out of Kerikeri to Auckland, Tauranga or wherever. Today the option for many of us to move to ‘other’ larger centres is not an option because of higher costs, so as a result more of us (vendors) are choosing to stay in Kerikeri. The effect of this is a population gain that we estimate to be around 6 -800 people in the last year! To stabilize the market we need to add to the existing stock and keep up with demand. First of all, Kerikeri needs more residential land within walking distance of town with the infrastructure to support it.  Secondly, we have reached the point of not having enough tradespeople to build the homes on order now. Will values continue to increase? Yes we believe so…

* Source REINZ Statistics