Prices start to fall off in city, Central

The figures provide an average sale price for each territorial authority and a percentage change in property value growth.

Invercargill's property growth for the year ending March dipped from 9.2 percent in the year ending February to 8 percent at an average sale price of $133,576 – a trend many of New Zealand's urban areas are following.

Central Otago joins Invercargill in recording a drop-off, with property value growing by only 14.7 percent during the year ending March as opposed to 15.3 percent for the year ending February, at an average sale price of $238,799.

Nationally, the market is still growing by 12.1 percent in the year to March 2005 but is down from the 13.5 percent growth enjoyed in the year to February.

QV Valuations Central manager Blue Hancock said the cooling of property values started in the major urban areas and had begun to extend into some of the provincial cities.

"Expect the trend of gradual slowing of property value growth to continue for most areas in the coming months," he said.

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