How to compare NZ properties
Comparing houses in New Zealand usually means juggling TradeMe, RealEstate.co.nz, Homes.co.nz and OneRoof tabs while trying to remember which place had the bigger section. This guide gives you a repeatable process for comparing properties without losing track.
1. Compare the fields that actually differ
Two houses can look almost identical in a photo gallery and be very different on paper. Before you fall for the styling, line up the same fields for every property:
- Asking price and, separately, the rateable value (CV)
- Land area and floor area — a large section can mean a smaller house and vice versa
- Bedrooms, bathrooms and car parking
- Year built, plus any mention of renovations or a new roof
- Days on the market and any price reductions
Seeing these side by side is the difference between a gut feeling and an informed decision.
2. Write down what matters to you first
It is much easier to compare properties once you know your priorities. Decide, roughly in order, what you cannot compromise on and what you are flexible about — school zone, commute, section size, number of bedrooms, off-street parking, or future subdivision potential.
Then score each property against that list. A house that wins on the things you care about is worth more than one that wins on the thing that merely photographs well.
3. Pick one place to keep every listing
Most people start with a spreadsheet. It works, but every entry is manual: you copy the price, the address, the bedrooms, the link, and then the photos. The moment a listing changes you are editing rows by hand.
A purpose-built comparison list is faster and more accurate. The free HouseHunter extension captures the listing as you browse — click the icon on any supported property page and the address, price, bedrooms, bathrooms and images are saved automatically into a single table you can sort and export.
You can also add a saved address and see the straight-line distance, in kilometres or metres, from each property to it, so relative locations are easy to judge at a glance.
4. Compare across all four NZ portals
The same property rarely looks identical on every site, so it pays to compare listings from each portal. These guides cover what is unique to each one:
5. Tips for comparing house prices
- Don't compare asking price with CV. CVs are a council valuation, not a market price, and can be well out of date.
- Look at sold prices nearby. Recent sales in the same suburb are the closest thing to a real benchmark.
- Watch days on market. A listing that has sat for months is often more negotiable than a fresh one.
- Note price reductions. A drop since it was first listed is a useful signal.
- Check every portal. Some RealEstate.co.nz listings have prices that are hidden on the page; HouseHunter can surface them so you are comparing like with like.
When your shortlist is ready, export the comparison to PDF or Excel and take it to open homes, a partner, or a mortgage adviser.
Frequently asked questions
How do I compare house prices in New Zealand?
Line up the asking price, the rateable value (CV), land area, floor area and how long the listing has been on the market. Asking prices and CVs are different figures, so compare like with like and look at recent sold prices for the same suburb where you can.
Can I compare properties listed on different websites?
Yes. The same property is often listed on TradeMe, RealEstate.co.nz, Homes.co.nz and OneRoof, each with slightly different details. A comparison tool such as the HouseHunter browser extension lets you save listings from all four sites into one table.
Is there a free way to compare NZ properties?
Yes. HouseHunter is a free browser extension for Chrome and Firefox. It stores your comparison list locally in your browser, requires no account, and lets you compare up to 50 properties and export them to PDF or Excel.
Where is my comparison list stored?
Your list is kept locally in your browser's extension storage. When you add a listing, the page HTML is sent to our API only to extract the property details with AI, then discarded — your saved comparison list itself is never stored on our servers.
How many properties can I compare at once?
Up to 50. That is enough to cover a serious house hunt across several suburbs without the list becoming unmanageable.
Compare NZ properties without the chaos
Free browser extension. Track listings from TradeMe, RealEstate.co.nz, Homes.co.nz, and OneRoof in one comparison table. No account required, and your list stays in your browser.