Auckland's asking price slips under $1m as 13,958 homes wait for buyers

Auckland's average asking price has dropped below $1 million for the first time in six years, on Realestate.co.nz's numbers. The September figure of $993,562 is 2.9 per cent lower than August and more than $280,000 under the January 2022 peak of $1,274,829. The more telling number may be 13,958, the homes now on the market, up 13.8 per cent on a year ago and growing faster than the new listings feeding it.

What the numbers say

Asking prices are what sellers hope to get, not what homes sell for, so this is a measure of hopes, not of deals done.

More than 3,500 new Auckland listings arrived in September, up 7.7 per cent on a year earlier. Total Auckland stock is 13,958, up 13.8 per cent on September 2025. Nationally, 1News reported Realestate.co.nz's September data put the average asking price at $855,245, down 0.2 per cent, with 34,001 homes on the market, up 10.7 per cent.

Other property sites measure asking prices differently, and Trade Me has reported Auckland dipping below $1 million on its own measure before, so the $1 million line is not owned by any one data set.

What it means for you

For anyone shopping for a home in Auckland, choice is growing. Vanessa Williams, general manager of customer at Realestate.co.nz, said: "The combination of almost 14,000 properties on the market and asking prices well below their peak has created one of the most buyer-friendly markets the city has seen in years."

For anyone selling, the same numbers cut the other way, because more homes competing for buyers is what pulls asking prices down.

Law News reports that Cotality's Kelvin Davidson said sustained house price growth looks unlikely until labour market conditions and job security improve.

Our take

The $1 million mark is symbolic, and one month of asking prices proves very little. A single reading can be reversed next month.

The stock figure tells more. When the number of homes for sale grows faster than the new listings feeding it, it points to homes taking longer to sell, and sellers who want to move may need to meet buyers on price.

Asking prices are the first thing to move. What people actually pay is the number to watch next.