Farm sales slump

FAIRFAX

FOR SALE: In the three months ending February 205 farms were sold, down from 276 farm sales in the same three month period in 2009.

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Farm sales and prices are on the decline, according to data released by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ).

In the three months ending February 205 farms were sold, down from 276 farm sales in the same three month period in 2009 and 713 for the same quarter in 2008.

The national median farm sale price has also taken a dive. It was $1,045,00 for the three months ending February 2010, down from $1,262,500 for the same period last year and $1,750,000 in the three months ending February 2008.

REINZ President Peter McDonald said there were still “reasonable levels of inquiries” for all types of farms, but they did not seem to be leading to completed transactions.

Although farm sales were down, lifestyle blocks proved to be more resilient. A total of 1105 lifestyle properties were sold in the three months to February 2010, up from 877 in the same period in 2009.

- © Fairfax NZ News