The unique offer comes as NZ’s median house price tumbles 10.9% annually
As Auckland’s house prices continue to fall, the owners of a Barfoot & Thompson listing in the Auckland suburb of Flat Bush have opted to throw in a free Tesla in a bid to stand out in the competitive housing market.
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Figures released by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand this week showed that the country’s median house price was down 10.9% annually, while the overall volume of houses sold in October also significantly dropped by 34.7% compared with last year.
Kapil Rana, the property’s real estate agent, said he had so far received more than 50 emails enquiring about the modern two-storey home that is selling for at least $1.8 million, since advertising the Tesla offer on Tuesday, 1News reported.
The Tesla has not been bought yet, Rana said. The buyer will be able to choose the colour of the car they want once the property has been sold.
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Simran Kaur, founder of stock market podcast for women Girls That Invest, said the free Tesla offer was a good example of real estate agents realising that they can’t keep reducing house prices.
“If you sell a home with a Tesla, you suddenly don’t have to drop the price and so it doesn’t start to drag all the neighbouring homes down as well,” Kaur said.
She said it was not surprising that New Zealand’s house pricing has been overvalued.
“But now with really high interest rates, even those that could justify a high house price can’t justify the monthly mortgage cost,” Kaur said. “We’ve [got] to the natural point of the housing market cycle where we’re going to see a cool down because there’s not enough interest for the prices.”
But she said prices haven’t gotten so low that homeowners should be worried.
Kaur also said she “wouldn't be surprised if we see a few more free Teslas popping up,” 1News reported.
