Auckland investors are pushing cautious Waikato buyers out of the property market and swamping Hamilton open homes in their bid for affordable houses.

Managing director of Lodge Real Estate, Jeremy O'Rourke, said Auckland investors had more confidence in the Hamilton market and where capital gains may occur and in some instances that foresight was beating local investors and first home buyers.

"There's a different belief set that they bring with them and I think perhaps local buyers need to be a little bit more confident about the desirability of Hamilton and the growth that Hamilton will have going forward."

Waikato's northern neighbours seemed to have a higher tolerance for lower yields on residential property, he said, and they were finding a "middle ground" between the two cities in Hamilton.

O'Rourke said 26 per cent of Lodge's June sales were to Aucklanders.

The general manager of Harcourts Hamilton, Brian King, said there had been a "noticeable" increase in Aucklanders coming through open homes in Hamilton as people working in south Auckland eyed the Waikato as a way of stepping onto the property ladder.

Simon Lugton of Lugton's Real Estate said housing supply and demand were out of kilter and Hamilton was experiencing a "chronic shortage".

"There's certainly a real stock shortage at the moment. We've got just over 500 houses for sale in Hamilton." Lugton said that was less than six weeks' supply of housing.

"We had a property the other day that had an asking price of $279,000 and an Auckland buyer purchased it for $329,100. The asking price didn't matter, it went for close to $60,000 over asking price."

The owners couldn't believe it, he said. "The Auckland buyer blew the other buyers out of the water."

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There was also "fierce demand" for properties in the Rototuna area, Lugton said, and brick homes were selling at a premium.

"That almost takes it to another level. We had one property on Hukanui Rd so it's on the main road but very well presented and immaculately maintained by an older couple and the result blew them away on what it actually got on the day."

It sold for over $700,000. A year ago, the couple would have struggled to sell over $600,000, he said.

"It's very hard to buy a brick, four bedroom, two bathroom house for under $600,000 now. Six months ago you could buy one for under six but not now."

O'Rourke said the housing market was under "enormous pressure" and house prices were set to rise rapidly.

Properties were regularly selling $50,000 above asking price in auction rooms.

"We haven't seen the market react this way in the time we've been in business."

While it was not unusual to see supply drop during winter months, there was uncertainty around high demand, he said.

"And one of the things we know anecdotally is that prices rise when there's three months stock on the market so at the moment we're less than half of that so you can see the kind of pressure that sits in the market at the moment."

Harcourts Hamilton central city branch manager Campbell Scott said over a 16-day period they had 143 offers on 22 properties. Sixty of those offers by buyers outside of Hamilton.

Scott agreed Auckland buyers were more tolerant of lower yields and said the Auckland currency was sometimes stronger than the Hamilton dollar.

"Twenty grand from an Auckland buyer's perspective is not as significant as it may be for a local buyer who is more used to our price point."