2010.09.1319:48:00UTC+00New Zealand August House Prices Rise 0.3% On Month

An index measuring home sales in New Zealand was up 0.3 percent in August compared to the previous month, the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand said on Tuesday, posting a score of 3,201.7. That follows a 1.2 percent decline in July.

On an annual basis, house sales were down 27.1 percent following the 26.7 percent decline in the previous month.

In the three months to August, sales were down 1.2 percent on quarter but up 0.9 percent on year.

The total number of sales across New Zealand fell again, with 4287 homes sold in August - down from 4411 in July.

In Christchurch, housing prices were 5.3 percent higher on year, while housing prices in Auckland added 0.7 percent, Wellington gained 0.8 percent and other South Island suburbs collected 1.6 percent. Prices for other North Island suburbs fell 1.7 percent.

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