The number of house sales are up in Tasman and there are “loads of buyers” who have “loads of choice” which is creating a more balanced market.
In the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand’s (REINZ) latest report, Tasman’s year-on-year growth in sales was up by 48.6 per cent (comparing the month of March 2024 with the month of March 2025) and the median price increased by 4.2 per cent to $865,000 for the March comparison.
The institute’s ambassador for Nelson Tasman, Darryl Marshall, says market sentiment is totally different to a year ago and while there is a strong base of purchasers looking for homes, there is also “a lot of stock for sale”.
“We’ve got a lot of stock, but we’ve also got a lot of people in the market looking to buy. On that basis, you’ve got a bit of balance. It’s still a buyers’ market, but there is a degree of balance because there’s quite a lot of people out there looking.”
It’s a definite change from last year in Nelson-Tasman which he describes as lack lustre, and he says the outlook is a more positive, stable property market.
“It was a really hard year for a lot of people last year and we have that confidence growing now.
“People are looking forward with confidence. Having said that, sales are often conditional which supports it’s locally driven, which is a good thing too. The market is creating its own activity rather than relying on outside activity.”
The report stated owner-occupiers and first-home buyers were the most active buyer groups across the region and Darryl says the bulk of buyer interest is in the $600,000 to $900,000 bracket.
He says houses need to be priced accurately to sell because of the higher number of listings, even though there are more buyers looking.
“A lot of buyers don’t have a lot of urgency to buy and they’re becoming quite savvy. It’s a critical factor to price your house right if you want to sell it. It always is, but it’s more critical in this market.”
Though interest rates have been dropping, Darryl says they continue to temper buyers who still have to make it work for their individual situation and employment remains an issue in the community.
Overall, the Nelson Tasman property market has reasonable stability which he says is largely driven by local activity and local interest. Regardless of the economy, there are reasons for people to move to another house. Another factor in Tasman is the growth in new housing throughout the region, which he describes as “quite phenomenal”.
The report found market sentiment for the region was overall more positive in March due to declining interest rates, a lack of buyer urgency, increased stock on the market and the local market’s transition from buyer-driven to a more balanced market.
