New Zealand home resale losses rise to 15.8% in third quarter 2026

Cotality says 15.8% of New Zealand homes resold in Q3 2026 went for less than their last purchase price, the highest share since Q3 2012.

The facts

15.8% of residential properties resold in the third quarter of 2026 changed hands for less than their previous purchase price, the highest share Cotality has recorded since the third quarter of 2012.
The share was 13.2% in the second quarter of 2026, a rise of 2.6 percentage points in one quarter.
The median loss was 60,000 NZ dollars and the median gain 270,000 NZ dollars. Total gross gains came to 3.6 billion NZ dollars against total gross losses of 179 million.
Properties resold at a loss had been owned for a median of 4.5 years, against 10.4 years for those resold for a gain.
Apartments were the weak point at 48%, more than three times the 13.4% recorded for standalone houses; townhouses were at 22.5%.
Investors sold at a loss in 16.4% of cases and owner-occupiers in 15.0%, up from 13.9% and 12.7% in the second quarter.

Entry prices have given way, but a short hold is now the real risk. Properties resold at a loss had been held a median 4.5 years.
For an existing owner the gross numbers are associated with long holds: the median gain of 270,000 NZ dollars sits behind a 10.4-year median hold.
Glopra data put the New Zealand national price level 6.9% lower than five years ago, with transaction costs of 5.5%, so a resale inside that window starts from a weak base before any fee is paid.

Cotality does not define what “gross” excludes. The report makes no statement about agent commission, legal fees, holding costs or renovation spend, so the report does not show whether these figures are measured before or after transaction costs.
No sample size is published anywhere in the report, so none of these shares can be converted into a number of homes.
Apartments stand out for how often they lose rather than for the size of any one loss. The 60,000 NZ dollar median loss the report headlines is market-wide, not by dwelling type.

Sources: Cotality https://www.cotality.com/nz/insights/articles/property-resale-losses-hit-highest-level-since-2012