The many reasons New Zealand homeowners sell: “Relationship breakdown—this home must sell!”

People generally buy homes either to live in or as investments, but in this era of high house prices and interest rates, homeowners have all sorts of reasons for selling. Of course, owners do not need a grand justification. More often, they give a reason to help their real estate agent persuade prospective buyers that the property really must sell. Our round-up of the most common supposed “reasons for selling” includes owners changing jobs, moving overseas, upsizing or downsizing, or moving into a retirement home after retiring.

Many online commenters believe the fundamental “reason” for selling is simply a shortage of money, and that there is little point in buyers grilling the agent. From a seller's perspective, unless the property has been the scene of a violent or unnatural death, there is no need to explain too much to buyers. Buyers need only find a home they like at a price they consider reasonable.

A prominent home at 27 Multose Drive, Flat Bush, was recently listed for auction following the owners' marriage breakdown

Recently, a couple openly announced that they had decided to sell their jointly owned property following the breakdown of their relationship. Ray White agent Rubal Singh, who is handling the sale, said he disclosed that the owners were “going their separate ways” when listing the property to demonstrate their firm commitment to selling. He always encourages owners to explain their motivation for selling, whether it involves an owner's death, a mortgagee sale or divorce, to show buyers they are serious and encourage participation in the auction.

He believes people always like to profit from others' misfortune, such as mortgagee sales or deceased estates, because they know the sellers are committed to selling rather than testing the market. The home at 27 Multose Drive is the second property he has listed because of a relationship breakdown in the past four months. However, Singh does not see this as a trend, attributing it instead to “one of those unfortunate circumstances”.

Similarly, an unfinished home with three bedrooms, a living room and a bathroom at 1/730 Beach Road, Browns Bay, Auckland, was recently listed under the headline “Untie the knot, lift the burden”. Harcourt agents Andrew Harley and Cam Brooks, who are marketing the property, said the sellers decided to disclose that they were going through a divorce to demonstrate their determination to sell. In practice, this has indeed helped the property stand out from other listings.

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The Trade Me listing also includes a line that is both amusing and poignant: “The marriage may not stand the test of time, but this home certainly will.” This unconventional marketing approach appears to have been highly effective, attracting more than 5500 views so far. Harley said the three-bedroom home was unfinished, so a buyer would need to take over the project or pay someone to complete it. He said he had not noticed a recent increase in listings resulting from couples separating, but had heard it was happening as rising living costs put considerable pressure on many people.

Meanwhile, a home with three bedrooms, a living room and a bathroom at 1/52 Sikkim Crescent, Clover Park, Manukau, was also recently listed following the owners' relationship breakdown. Having never received a code compliance certificate when it was built six years ago, it too needs a particular type of buyer. Harveys agents Chamalee Ratnayake and Bobby Ali, who are jointly marketing the property, said the sellers chose the headline “Relationship breakdown—must sell” to explain the need for a sale and attract prospective buyers. Ali said the property had attracted considerable investor interest, but buyers would struggle to obtain bank finance because it lacked a code compliance certificate.

SM Properties director Scott Muirson said they had completed transactions over the past month with four buyers who had each separated from their partners. All were women who bought townhouses in West Auckland priced at NZ$600,000–700,000. Muirson said they were generally not moving out of large homes; instead, they were selling properties jointly owned with their partners and buying townhouses on their own.

However, divorce lawyer Jeremy Sutton does not advise clients to disclose their reasons for selling, because this can suggest urgency and make reasonable offers less likely. Sutton said people separating want to protect their children's privacy and do not want others to think they have run out of options. These factors mean the number of people selling because of divorce is often much higher than people imagine.

He added that other matters people selling because of divorce should consider include selling by tender, obtaining a new property valuation, ensuring the LIM report is up to date, and signing a settlement agreement under section 21A before listing.