‍Lance provides a metaphorical weather report on Wellington’s turbulent property climate.

There was a time in Wellington when slow and steady would win the house-purchasing race. Back then there were no sudden spikes in house prices, 3000 people weren’t joining you on a Sunday trekking from open home to open home, and you didn’t have to go “all in” to purchase.

So, where is the climate at now? What is it like out there today in July 2017?

Well, let’s start by painting the picture back in mid-2015 when it seemed there would be no slowing down of Wellington’s rapidly increasing house prices. Everything was fast pace. Unconditional offers were all but essential. For some, these were exciting times, for others, soul-destroying, as people were smashed out of the park with what seemed to be “crazy prices”.  

So what could stop or even slow that frantic market? How about some good old Kiwi earthquakes? At the end of 2016, the earthquake(s) caused house insurances to become a little complicated. People started calculating the cost of the damage and this seemed to be the moment that the housing frenzy took a breather.

Then enter 2017.

Now the market is a little confused. Certainly less of a frenzy than before the earthquakes, but most houses are still going for good money, most are still getting multiple offers, and there are some exciting building developments around our region. Add to all this, our dogged belief that Transition Gully is the answer to all of Wellington’s problems and we live in a 2017 that still has a current shortage of stock (properties to purchase) and a mass of people wanting to buy.

So how do you become one of those who successfully buys in 2017? Well, those who are ready to go “all in” are still more likely to win. And if you are wishing to purchase, the Civil Defence moto stands true, “Be prepared.”

So when you find the right place to buy and you want to hit the ground running with your bid, be sure to give us a bell so we can help get your financial ducks in a row.

Lance Shearman is a Registered Financial Adviser with Velocity Financial. No investment decision should be taken based on the information in this blog alone. A disclosure statement is available free of charge upon request.