Does the upcoming election affect residential real estate?

Contrary to popular belief, elections do not appear to have a negative effect on the real estate market. Chris Fahri from Bayleys Insights and Data has summarised this in a graph below:

Elections rarely have an impact on New Zealand’s housing market, according to new research - Analysis of sales activity in the three months prior to and three months after each of the last seven general elections found little change in all but one election year. The exception was the 2014 election, when the Labour Party’s plans to introduce a capital gains tax and foreign buyer ban spooked the market.

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Activity before and after the polls has mostly been driven by regulation and other non-campaign-related factors, including lockdowns, the loan to value ratio (LVR) rules, interest rates, access to finance, migration, and the availability of housing.

So, for those wondering if it’s better to hold off selling until after the election, the answer is: no, the best time to sell was yesterday!