Dunedin Market Report - February 2024

The Dunedin median price for February was $590,000, up from $575,000 in February 2023, consistent with the last 12 months of results. It appears that our predictions that Dunedin has found its new normal seem well founded, at least for now until we see any significant reductions in mortgage interest rates

A positive for sellers was the median number of days on the market at 39 which is 23 days fewer than last February. If you’re currently for sale and taking much longer than this to sell, it may be time to revisit your asking price expectations, presentation or investment in marketing. There’s little point staying on the market and helping other homes around you sell.

Despite the large number of available homes for buyers to choose from (677 at this time) the median days and the number sold in February prove that buyers will act if they see value. There were 186 sales. A substantial increase of 39.8% compared to February 2023.

There are looming changes to government policy, but also reserve bank lending policy, and it will be interesting to see what affect these have on our market. In many ways they may balance each other out. The reintroduction of interest tax deductibility will help some investors, while the change to a 2 year bright line will ease some concerns over investment.

However, introducing debt to income ratios of 6 x income for owner-occupier lending and 7 x income for investment lending (with an exclusion for new homes) will no doubt affect the borrowing capacity of many smaller investors.

Our advice for buyers, act now. You have a great selection to choose from and prices seem unlikely to come down. Our advice for sellers, make sure your home is well presented and priced correctly so you can move on with your future plans while the market remains stable.

Dunedin Stats Graph median and volume of sales. Source REINZ