Brent MelvilleBrent Melville

Brent Melville is a reporter at Business Desk

For the first time in 14 years, almost 10,000 houses were sold last month

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First home buyers and investors compete as a record number of homes get snapped up. Businessdesk’s Brent Melville reports. Almost 10,000 houses changed hands last month, a 29.6% increase on last November. Latest data from the Real Estate Institute of NZ showed that was the highest monthly sales in 14 years. The frantic nature of … Read more

Housing is hot – so why aren’t realtors repaying the wage subsidy?

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Real estate firms are hanging on to millions in wage subsidies despite a red-hot housing market recovery since June, reports Brent Melville of BusinessDesk. Three of the country’s leading realtors — Harcourts, Bayleys, and Barfoot & Thompson — claimed a combined $8 million in wage support for more than 1,000 employees when pandemic-induced lockdowns were … Read more

Banks more positive about house prices – but they could still fall 10%

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While banks predict house prices will still fall, by how much depends on a number of factors – including location, reports Brent Melville for BusinessDesk.  Banks are being less than apocalyptic on their expectations for a post-Covid housing market correction, which could be as low as 5%, although they warn of potentially significant regional variations. … Read more