July was a good month for Marlborough property sellers, with houses selling in half the time of a month earlier.

The quick turnaround has been attributed to a shortage of homes for sale and an increase in potential buyers.

The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand and Quotable Values figures for July also show small increases in the number of houses sold in the region and in the value of Marlborough houses compared with June.

The average time it took to sell a house more than halved from an average of 97 days in June to 42 days in July.

Mark Stevenson First National Real Estate director Mark Stevenson, of Blenheim, said low interest rates were the biggest factor encouraging people to look at buying, especially for first-home buyers.

The uncertain economic times also meant more people were looking for a solid, tangible investment and coming back to buying property. However, winter was traditionally a time when fewer people put their homes on the market, leaving a shortage of housing stock.

Harcourts Marlborough co-owner Aaron Davis said there had been an increase in buyers moving from Christchurch as the Government wound up its buy-up of quake-damaged properties.

The REINZ figures showed 81 houses were sold in Marlborough and Kaikoura in July compared with 76 sold in June.

Just 60 houses were sold in the region in July last year.

According to the QV figures, the average house price in Marlborough has risen 3.5 per cent over the last three months, from an average of $328,380 to $338,536.

- The Marlborough Express

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