It may be spring, but it feels like summer if you are watching the property market, as record levels of activity in the market are already hitting summer peaks.

As Auckland comes out of just over three weeks of lockdown at Level 3, many will be surprised to see that the market remained strong throughout, even beating sales records from the same time last year. Mortgage payments for First time buyers have also continued to remain affordable in all regions.

The latest CoreLogic Pain & Gain report shows that the proportion of properties being resold for more than the original purchase price (i.e. a gross profit, or “gain”) in Q2 2020 across New Zealand was 96.1%.

Licensees must comply with these health requirements at alert level 2.

The market has shaken off the effects of the original lockdown with a strong return, as it continues to shake off any fears around the current lockdown, with sales in auction rooms continuing to climb. Economist at the country’s largest banks also predict that the OCR could drop into the negatives in 2021.

Despite what had been described as “inevitable” Auckland was taken by surprise last Tuesday when the government announced that COVID-19 has re-emerged in the community with no identifiable trace to the border. The response has been swift and we are now locally in the midst of a two week Lockdown at Level 3, with the rest of the nation at level 2.

New data has proven that despite the winter blues and post-COVID predictions, the residential market has come back swinging, with a sales success rate that hasn’t been seen in the month of July in over five years.

First Time Buyers have broken records as they claim a record-high share of the mortgage money advanced in June, taking advantage of low mortgage rates post lockdown, mirrored by the sales successes seen in Auckland auction rooms.

The government announced ahead of the election a fund to help low-income first-time buyers into the property market, just as a report announced that mortgage repayments have hit a four-year low.