Choose a licensed agent who sells in Mataura and the wider Gore District, explains commission in dollars before you sign and shows you the recent sales behind their appraisal. Ray White Gore sells homes and sections in Mataura from its Gore office. This page covers what the town is like, the market figures that apply and how to compare agents.
Mataura is in Gore District, in the Mataura Ward, and has its own community board, after the Mataura Borough Council merged into Gore District Council in 1989. It sits on the eastern fringe of the Southland Plain on State Highway 1 and the Main South Line railway, about 13 km south west of Gore (Wikipedia, Mataura, distances approximate). The Mataura River flows south through the town, and Mataura Falls, a sandstone bed about 6.1 metres high, lies on the northern outskirts, and is known to local Maori as Te Aunui. The town is known for its paper mill, which was formed in the mid 1870s and closed in August 2000 with 155 staff made redundant. The estimated population was about 1,670 in June 2025.
Mataura is a short drive from Gore, and State Highway 1 runs through the town. Mataura School teaches years 1 to 6, and older students travel to Gore for secondary school (Wikipedia, Mataura). Our guide on the cost of selling in Gore explains the costs of a sale, from commission and GST to marketing and legal fees.
We quote REINZ figures for Gore District rather than for Mataura alone, because monthly sales in one small place are too few to publish safely. In September 2026 the median sale price in Gore District was $475,100, up 4.4% on September 2025, from 23 sales, with 29 median days to sell. The table shows the latest months REINZ has formally released for Gore District. A median sale price is the middle price when all sales in a month are lined up, so it describes the market, not one property.
| Month | Median sale price | Number of sales | Median days to sell |
| September 2026 | $475,100 | 23 | 29 |
| August 2026 | $453,000 | 26 | 30 |
| July 2026 | $452,000 | 23 | 32 |
| June 2026 | $445,000 | 20 | 37 |
| May 2026 | $475,000 | 28 | 39 |
| April 2026 | $485,000 | 23 | 37 |
Source: REINZ Statistics (Real Estate Institute of New Zealand), Market Insights Report, Gore District, April to September 2026, accessed 13 November 2026. These are REINZ figures for the whole district, not for Mataura alone. Ray White Gore is not speaking on behalf of REINZ. More at reinz.co.nz.
Gore District Council issues LIMs for properties in its district. It lists a residential LIM at $400.00 for 2026 to 2027 (fees and charges), issued within 10 working days, and a rural, commercial or industrial LIM at actual cost with a $550.00 deposit. The council states that its staff do not inspect properties, so a LIM does not replace a building inspection. See the council’s LIM page.
You can check any licence on the Real Estate Authority’s public register at publicregister.rea.govt.nz, which also shows complaints upheld in the last three years. The REA says commission is negotiable and that an agent must explain the formula and give you a dollar estimate, and Settled.govt.nz notes that GST is added to the commission. Our guide Who should I sell with in Gore? lists the questions to ask, and the cost of selling explains each cost.
Ray White Gore sells homes, lifestyle properties and rural property in Mataura and the surrounding area. Call us on (03) 208 9490, visit 37 Main Street, Gore, or use the form below for a free appraisal.
Other sources: Wikipedia (Mataura), Gore District Council, Real Estate Authority and Settled.govt.nz. All accessed 13 November 2026. This page is general information and not legal advice.
Last updated: 13 November 2026. Written by the Ray White Gore team. Ray White Gore is licensed as Nicole Cronin Realty Ltd (REAA 2008), 37 Main Street, Gore 9710.