Average Auckland property price passes NZ$800,000

House prices in New Zealand’s largest city are continuing to reach unprecedented highs, according to two separate reports released in the last week.

The latest figures from one of the city’s largest real estate agents, Barfoot & Thompson, show that the average price of the 1,070 houses sold in Auckland by the agency last month was NZ$804,282. This is up from NZ$776,729 a month earlier.

This news follows hot on the heels of the latest state-owned Quotable Value house price report, which had average property prices in the region at NZ$809,200 – up 14.6 per cent from a year earlier.

Given that Auckland is by far and away New Zealand’s number one settlement destination for new immigrants – a factor that is often attributed to the rising prices – anyone hoping to settle in the region over the coming months and, more importantly, looking to buy a house there, will need to do all they can to make their money go as far as possible.

And this is where exchanging your Pounds for NZ Dollars at exactly the right time becomes imperative. When exchanging large lump sums, even only slight fluctuations in the currency exchange markets can have a huge impact on the money you’ll have available with which to start your new life.

The Pound-New Zealand Dollar exchange rate has been up and down in the past few months. As recently as 23rd April £1 would have purchased you just NZ$1.931 while by yesterday the rate had climbed to £1=NZ$2.026. Therefore, if you were exchanging £150,000 – say from the sale of your UK home – then this would equate to a potential difference of NZ$14,250 in just over two weeks.

Fortunately, you don’t have to be a financial whizz kid to make sure you get the best exchange rate – that’s what companies like Halo Financial are there for.

Foreign exchange companies understand why the exchange rates are moving and just what impact this has on your currency transaction. What’s more, they can also explain how to make your money go further and give you a range options on exactly when you wish to exchange, and how much you should exchange at a time.

Therefore, rather than leaving your currency exchange to the last minute, it’s best to start taking expert advice the second you become serious about starting a new life in another country.

To find out how you can make sure you can get the best exchange rate possible, take advantage of positive fluctuations in the markets and make sure you start your new life with the most purchasing power possible, visit www.halofinancial.com