Who’s buying now? A closer look at today’s changing property buyer

The buyer pool is changing

When we compare our latest Q2 2026 Property Pulse with the survey from late last year, some clear shifts emerge in who is active in the market.

Downsizers remain highly active, with 63% of agents identifying them as a leading buyer group, unchanged from Q4 2025. Upsizers are also prominent, identified by 57% of agents. And expats are becoming more prominent, with almost double the proportion of agents identifying them as an active buyer group in Q2 compared with Q4 2025.

Together, those results point to a buyer pool increasingly shaped by life stage, relocation and changing lifestyle needs.

Some buyers are looking for more space. Others are simplifying without wanting to compromise on location or quality. For returning New Zealanders, the property decision connects to bigger choices about where to live and how to re-establish themselves.

Downsizers remain highly focused on location

Among agents who identified downsizers as an active buyer group, 90% also reported location as a key influence on buyer choice. Just over half, 51%, identified property condition, while 38% cited lifestyle.

That suggests downsizing is not necessarily about simply choosing something smaller.

For many buyers in this stage of life, the style or scale of home may change, but the importance of where they live does not. Staying close to family, friends, established communities and valued amenities can remain a priority.

For vendors, that is an important distinction. A property does not need to fit the traditional idea of a “downsizer home” to appeal to this market.

Upsizers remain a steady force

While the mix of active buyers has shifted in some areas, upsizers have remained remarkably consistent. In Q2, 57% of agents identified upsizers as an active buyer group, compared with 55% in Q4 2025.

And their priorities suggest that upsizing is about more than simply finding a larger home. Among agents seeing upsizers as active, 88% also identified location as an important factor, while property condition, lifestyle and school zones also featured strongly.

For many, the move may be about finding a home that better fits the next stage of life - more space, but also the right location, amenity and quality.

Manukau Heads, Franklin: a rare combination of privacy, scale and breathtaking natural beauty. View the property here.

Expats are a growing buyer group

The rise in expat activity is one of the more notable changes in the latest survey.

The proportion of agents identifying expats as an active buyer group has almost doubled since Q4 2025. Among those agents, 90% also identified location as a major influence on property choice, while 50% cited lifestyle, compared with 34% across the survey overall.

For expats, both location and lifestyle appear to be primary decision-drivers, suggesting a deliberate and intentional approach to choosing where to settle.

Havelock North, Hastings: offering remarkable privacy just five minutes from Havelock North village. View the property here.

Lifestyle is becoming more important

That focus on lifestyle is also visible in the broader results. In Q2, 45% of agents identified lifestyle property as being in demand, up from 37% in Q4 2025.

Houses remain the most widely sought property type across the network, but the rise in lifestyle demand suggests that for a growing group of buyers, the decision is not only about the property itself, but what that property enables.

For vendors, this reinforces the importance of identifying and communicating the attributes that go beyond the floorplan.

Jack's Point, Queenstown: an architecturally designed residence in New Zealand's lifestyle capital. View the property.

What makes today’s buyer act?

While buyers may be taking a more measured approach, they are not passive. Agents identified clear action triggers.

Sharp pricing from launch - positioning your property competitively from day one - was cited by 62% of agents as likely to drive buyer action. Limited comparable stock was identified by 42%, while 37% pointed to urgency created by the selling method, such as auction or deadline sale.

These three factors shape buyer behaviour more than any other. The challenge is knowing which levers matter most for a particular property and a particular buyer – and that is where experienced local market knowledge becomes critical.