Demise of CGT gives Kiwis more positivity

The majority of New Zealanders believe residential property prices will be impacted by the coalition government’s dismissal of a capital gains tax.

That is the finding of Colliers International in its latest quarterly Residential Property Market Outlook survey. 52% of the respondents said the decision will impact house prices, 34% said it wouldn’t, and the remaining 14% were unsure. Of those who said prices would be influenced, 84% expect prices to increase.

“Now that the coalition government has rejected the tax in this or any future term, sentiment is gaining positivity,” Colliers International research and communications director Chris Dibble said.

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The survey also suggests overall expectations for median prices have stabilised at a net positive 16%, up slightly from 15% in the March 2019 quarter. The number of respondents expecting median prices to rise outweigh those who expect a decline.

Queenstown took out first place for the location where respondents expect higher median sale prices over the next 12 months. This was followed by Tauranga/Mt Maunganui and Wellington.

In Auckland, a lower proportion of respondents expect median prices to decrease. Overall, median price expectations in Rotorua saw the greatest improvement, with a net positive 21% compared with 7.2% in the previous survey.

A total of 9,614 Kiwis participated in the survey.