Private sales: ‘We got $1.3 million for our home, and saved $25,000’

Haydn Miller, 37, and wife Caitlin, 32, decided to try selling their Milldale home in north Auckland themselves after receiving news about their 2-year-old daughter's health.

“She’s got a critical illness, so we’ve taken quite a financial hit over the last two years with my wife not being able to work and my work hours cut down massively because I needed to look after my son while my wife and daughter were in hospital.”

The couple sold their five-year-old, four-bedroom, 175m² home on a 504m² section for $1.3 million in March.

“The agency fees were up around the $30,000 mark. So I would say after what we spent to sell, we’ve probably saved $20-25,000k at least.”

Miller, who is a builder, timed the market well. “We were looking on Trade Me almost every single day at what was selling in the area for what prices. We did notice a big drop in listings for houses that fitted within our category. So that was a good time to hit the market.”

“We had a figure in mind of market value, which was $1.3m or above, and they (the buyer) hit the nail on the head with the first offer.”

He said the process was far less intimidating than people assume.

“I think it is made out to be a scary, frightening whole lot of money should get a professional to do it. But in my opinion, at the end of the day, the big scary stuff’s done by the lawyers anyway. As long as you’re okay with dealing with strangers and you can hold a little bit of a conversation, it’s not that scary, really.”

The family used HomeSell, a company that assists private sellers with marketing, valuations, and document templates.

Managing Director Chris Caldwell, who is also a licensed agent, said in a tougher market, savings can help deals happen. “Vendors are having to sharpen their pencil, and if they're saving 30k, you know, they've got a bit more wiggle room.”

How popular are private sales?

Figures from Cotality show this year, 7.5% of listings have been private, compared to 4.7% last year.

What qualifies as a private sale includes both market sales and sales to family members.

Cotality head of research Nick Goodall says “There may be seasonal differences which haven’t played out yet, but on the face of it it’s interesting that we’ve returned to a market of higher private listings after the proportion dropped last year.”

Trade Me data also shows listings labelled as private sales dropped by around 10% in 2025.

Goodall believes stock levels play a part in decision-making. “If there’s very few properties... you might be more inclined to list it yourself.”

Aiden Doran, managing director of DORAN, a company which helps sellers with private sales, believes economic confidence is also a factor.

“I think in uncertain times they are more likely to go – okay, I’m not going to try something new... and that's when they'll go back to traditional agents.”

Can you get into legal trouble with a private sale?

The Real Estate Authority, which regulates the industry, says private sales come with significant legal responsibility.

CEO Belinda Moffat says “Private sellers have a legal obligation to share all the relevant information about their property with prospective buyers, such as any issues with the boundary or title, any unconsented building work or alterations, any known weathertightness issues and whether there are any proposed developments that could have an impact on a buyer's access, views or enjoyment. Failure to do that could put the sale in jeopardy or expose the seller to claims for breach of warranty under the sale agreement.”

Craig Wilson AREINZ and Eve on Cameron branch manager in Tauranga, says licensed agencies provide a safety net private sales lack.

“If something goes wrong (with a private sale) you haven't really got too many places to go back to. Whereas, if it's a real estate company, a licensed real estate company or sales person then you've got quite a lot of protections and provisions that look after you.”

“Disclosures of known defects, for example. We're very, very strict around that.”

HomeSell Managing Director Chris Caldwell says the key to avoiding trouble is honesty and professional legal advice.

“If you don’t know the answer, say you’ll go and find out rather than guessing. Once you have a price and conditions lined up, get a lawyer to review it. Never sign documents without a lawyer reviewing them.”

Does using an agent get you a higher price?

Craig Wilson believes there is a misconception about private sales saving a commission; “What more often happens is the vendor allows for the commission and their price, and then the buyer comes along and they allow for another commission that they perceive the vendor is saving, and so the vendor ends up under selling.”

“People were concerned about paying a fee of 20 grand, 25 grand, but quite often they undersell to the tune of 50 or 100 grand. So it's kind of a false economy.”

Cotality data shows the sales success rate is 11.5% higher with an agent over the last 10 years, while agent sales are typically slightly faster as well.

The median sales price for agent-led sales last year was $735,000, compared to $710,000 for private sales.

But head of research Nick Goodall cautions this price data could be skewed as it involves all property types, and the higher end of the market is more likely to choose an agent.

HomeSell’s Chris Caldwell also notes private sales data includes family transactions "it could be, you know, mum and dad selling something cheap to their son to get them on the property ladder".

He says the key is accurate pricing. "Pricing it right at the outset is really important... if they do hit the mark with the right price, they get good interest and get a result." - Stuff, 10 May 2026