The market is always changing, hence the value of this 5-minute read to ‘arm you’ with the latest market trends and insights both nationally and locally. Read on for the key information that every Rotorua property owner needs to know.
This market update is based on the information sourced from the REINZ (Real Estate Institute of NZ) verified sales reports to the end of November 2025, as published 16th December 2025.
National Trends
The key points of note nationally are:
National sales declined -5.7% year-on-year.
For NZ excluding Auckland sales declined -5.3% year-on-year.
Nationally sales are down -4.4% month-on-month.
For NZ excluding Auckland, sales are down -3.3% month-on-month.
National median Days to Sell decreased by one day to 40 days.
New listings are up 10.9% year-on-year.
Taking Housing Price Index (HPI) as the most accurate measure of market trend the latest results are:
- +0.1% month-on-month.
- +1.5% for the 3-month period September-October-November 2025.
- -0.2% year-on-year.
- Over the past 5 years, an average annual HPI growth of 1.5% per annum.
Overall
Sales counts have declined slightly year-on-year. They have also declined month-on-month which is unusual for this time of year.
HPI as the most accurate measure of market trend is showing static trends across short and longer time periods, as opposed to the modest positive trends reported last month. This, in our opinion, is reflective of a continuing stable but static market trend.
Liz Ryley, REINZ Chief Executive was quoted “this November marked only the sixth time in 33 years that New Zealand’s November sales count was below October’s, underscoring how unusual it is for activity to ease at this point in the seasonal cycle.”
Rotorua Property Market Update
There are currently (as of 17th December) 485 properties listed for sale in Rotorua. This compares with:
- 537 listings as at 20th November
- 495 listings as at 29th October
- 455 listings as at 3rd September
The number of properties listed for sale has decreased by 9.7% month-on-month (from 20th November to 17th December 2025).
80 sales were recorded for November 2025 (adjusted sales count published January
2026). This compares with:
- 81 sales for October
- 74 sales for September (adjusted sales count)
- 80 sales for August (adjusted sales count)
- 83 sales for November 2024 (year-on-year comparison).
The 80 sales recorded for November 2025 was:
- In-line with recent months
- Stable year-on-year
- Tracking above the national negative month-on-month and year-on-year trends
HPI market trends for Rotorua were:
- -0.3% month-on-month.
- -1.9% for the 3-month period September-October-November 2025
- -0.4% year-on-year
- Over the past 5 years, an average annual HPI growth rate of +2.3% per annum.
Overall
The adjusted sales count of 80 sales for November 2025 (as reported in January 2026) showed continuing stability in monthly and year-on-year sales counts, and in this respect Rotorua out-performed the national trends.
HPI market trends have swung from mildly positive trends reported last month, to mildly negative trends reported this month. Rotorua’s HPI trends continue to fluctuate from mildly positive to mildly negative reflecting a mostly stable but static market trend.
The month-on-month decline in the number of properties listed for sale is, in our opinion, inline with the ‘time-of-year’ trend, with prospective sellers becoming more likely to ‘hold-off’ until the New Year before listing their property for sale.
Power of 2 Update
With the adjusted sales count of 80 sales for the month of November, the Rotorua Property Market continued with stable month-on-month and year-on-year sales volumes, and in this respect out-performed the national trend. A pleasing result!
Market trend (as measured by HPI) has continued with mild fluctuations, with our assessment being that this data indicates the market trend continues to be mostly stable but ‘flat’.
As ‘the Power of 2’ we had an excellent month achieving 6 unconditional sales for our clients. Our ‘hat is off’ to Arizto for providing efficient digital systems, an agent app, and a central hub team that minimises our administrative time and maximises our capacity to be ‘market-facing’ and focus on the marketing and sale of properties. It really works well.
From our perspective the key contributing factors for every successful sale are:
- Ideally, tweaking presentation points before the photo shoot to enhance the visual appeal of the property.
- A flexible mix of marketing method(s) that we recommend on a case-by-case basis, as best fit for our client, the property, and the market conditions at time of launch.
- Premium marketing – with Arizto offering a superior marketing campaign that is second to none – resulting in a bigger pool of buyers to work with.
- The value we add as the listing agents. With 11 years Rotorua real estate experience we are a tried-and-true local team who come highly recommended by past clients.
If you are considering selling, now is the perfect time to request your Free No-Obligation Appraisal. We understand that you may be researching ahead of making any final decision.
We wish you and your loved ones all the very best, and for all things real estate you are warmly invited to call us for a relaxed conversation.
Wayne and Veena Hemingway - The Power of 2, Arizto Rotorua - December 2025
