Best Real Estate Agents in Nelson

We assessed 48 real estate agents in Nelson and ranked the top 5 on public rating quality, review volume and how recent the reviews are. The businesses listed below hold 751 Google reviews between them. No business can pay for a place in these rankings. Last updated 22 September 2026. How we rank

Top 5 Real Estate Agents in Nelson

The top 5 real estate agents in Nelson are #1 Harcourts Richmond, #2 Harcourts Nelson, #3 K Real Estate, #4 Emma McCashin - Summit Real Estate, and #5 Anthony Carppe House Realty, ranked by Top5 Score.

  • 1

    Harcourts Richmond

    ★ 4.9 195 reviews Score 167
    Highest
    5★ 187 4★ 3 3★ 1 2★ 1 1★ 3

    Harcourts Richmond covers residential sales, rural and farm sales, and buyer representation across the Nelson region, with named agents like Brent, Nate, Amy, Haley, Sophie, Toby, and Matt each building close working relationships with clients.

    261 Queen Street, Richmond

    Call 03 544 4441 Map Is this your business?
  • 2

    Harcourts Nelson

    ★ 4.8 120 reviews Score 158
    8.2 behind
    5★ 111 4★ 4 3★ 2 2★ 1 1★ 2

    Harcourts Nelson gets homes sold and buyers into properties across Nelson residential sales, with agents like Wyatt, Caroline, Struan, Sophie, and Mike each handling the full process from appraisal and marketing through to negotiation and settlement.

    227 Hardy Street, Nelson

    Call 03 548 3034 Map Is this your business?
  • 3

    K Real Estate

    ★ 4.8 89 reviews Score 153
    13.7 behind
    5★ 83 4★ 1 2★ 1 1★ 4

    K Real Estate gets vendors and buyers through sales and purchases, with agents like Amy, Olivia, Lisa, Rebecca, Sam, Hayley, and Nicola each covering the full process from appraisal and marketing through to negotiation and settlement.

    13 Coman Dr, Richmond

    Call 03 567 0870 Map Is this your business?
  • 4

    Emma McCashin - Summit Real Estate

    ★ 5.0 48 reviews Score 150
    16.2 behind
    5★ 48

    Emma McCashin - Summit Real Estate works through residential sales, section sales, and property purchases across Nelson, with Emma and Dwayne known for staying calm and solution-focused when building reports, buyer complications, or unexpected hurdles threaten a deal.

    203 Queen Street, Richmond

    Call 021 682 787 Map Is this your business?
  • 5

    Anthony Carppe House Realty

    ★ 4.9 51 reviews Score 149
    17.1 behind
    5★ 49 4★ 1 2★ 1

    Anthony Carppe House Realty gets vendors through residential sales, multi-unit sales, and property purchases across the Nelson region, with Anthony and Jane working as a coordinated pair to cover appraisals, marketing, buyer follow-up, and negotiation.

    292 Queen Street, Richmond

    Call 022 548 9662 Map Is this your business?

More rankings

More services in Nelson 5 links
Real Estate Agents elsewhere in New Zealand 4 links

Before you choose a real estate agent in Nelson

The agent who achieves the best price is not always the one who quotes the highest appraisal, whichever agency they work for. Ask agents about their recent sale prices relative to appraisal, their average days on market, and how they plan to market your specific property, not just their general approach.

The questions below are drawn from 278 customer reviews collected for this page.

What does a real estate agent typically charge in New Zealand?

Commission in New Zealand is structured on a sliding scale, most often around 4% on the first $400,000 and roughly 2% on the balance. On an $800,000 sale that works out to approximately $24,000 before GST, so calculate the dollar figure, not just the percentage.

Add 15% GST on top of whatever rate is quoted, as this is a real cost that vendors often underestimate. All commission terms must be written into a signed agency agreement before marketing begins, and the rate, agreement type, and duration are all negotiable before you sign.

How do I check if a real estate agent is licensed in New Zealand?

Every person carrying out real estate agency work in New Zealand must hold a current licence issued under the Real Estate Agents Act 2008, regulated by the Real Estate Authority (REA). Search the public register at rea.govt.nz before engaging anyone to sell or manage your property, as it shows licence type, current status, and any disciplinary history.

There are three licence classes, salesperson, branch manager, and agent, each with different qualification requirements, so check which class applies to the person you are dealing with. If someone cannot or will not provide their licence number, do not sign anything until you have confirmed their status on the register yourself.

How transparent is the process when there are multiple offers?

Under the Real Estate Agents Act 2008, agents must tell all interested buyers that competing offers exist, but they are not required to reveal the number of offers or the terms of any competing bid. As a buyer, submit your strongest offer from the outset and attach as few conditions as possible if you want to stand out in a multi-offer situation.

Sellers control whether to accept one offer, negotiate with one party only, or ask all buyers to submit a best and final offer, and a good agent will walk you through those options clearly. The Real Estate Authority (REA) at rea.govt.nz publishes plain-language guidance on multi-offer situations, and you can lodge a complaint there if you believe an agent has not handled the process fairly.

What are the warning signs of a real estate agent you shouldn't use?
  • –An agent who quotes a higher potential return than competitors to win your business, then asks you to reduce the price shortly after listing, is prioritising the listing over your result.
  • –Missed open homes or late arrivals without warning are a direct sign of disorganisation and disrespect for buyers and vendors alike.
  • –If feedback after viewings is slow, vague, or only arrives when you chase it, the agent is not working the buyer pipeline on your behalf.
  • –An agent who pushes for a quick sale without exhausting negotiation options may be managing their own schedule rather than your sale price.
  • –Vague answers about marketing strategy before listing, with no specific plan for photography, online reach, or open home scheduling, suggest a passive rather than active approach.
  • –Poor availability at critical moments such as offer negotiations or auction day is a serious risk, as timing in those situations directly affects your outcome.
What should you ask before hiring a real estate agent?
  • –Ask how they arrived at their suggested price and request comparable sales data to back it up, not just their instinct.
  • –Ask for a written marketing plan that specifies channels, photography, open home frequency, and how they will reach buyers who are not actively searching online.
  • –Ask how often they will report back after viewings and what format that feedback will take, weekly written updates were a specific feature that vendors in these reviews valued.
  • –Ask who will actually be present at open homes and handling day-to-day buyer contact, since some agents list the property but delegate most contact to a less experienced team member.
  • –Ask how they manage the negotiation process when offers come in, including whether they will advocate for your price or simply pass offers along and encourage you to accept.
  • –Ask whether any part of the marketing cost is charged separately from commission and confirm the total dollar amount you will pay, including GST, before signing the agency agreement.
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About this ranking

What the 10 real estate agents listed above hold, at the 22 September 2026 check.

195
reviews held by the #1 ranked business
51
reviews held by the #5 ranked business
4.5
lowest rating among the 10 listed
2.7%
of their 751 reviews are one-star
How are the top real estate agents in Nelson chosen?

We build this page from Google Maps results for real estate agents in Nelson. Each one is scored on its public rating and review record, using the same published method on every page. Businesses outside the area, or whose reviews describe a different line of work, are left out. Every category and city is rechecked on a rolling cycle, about every two to three months. See how we rank for how rankings are made and who is left out. On specialist pages like this one, a business's reviews count in proportion to how many of them are about real estate agents, so a business mostly reviewed for other work cannot win on review volume alone. See the words we look for.

Are you a real estate agent in Nelson?

No business can pay for a place in these rankings. Claiming and verifying your listing is free: it adds a small trust bonus (+3 points) to your score, for confirming a real operator stands behind the listing, and gives you a dashboard showing how your score is made up. A paid subscription adds a website link, a profile page and your ranking history. Claim your listing or see what a subscription includes.

Not listed? The usual reasons are a Google Business category that does not match, too few reviews to score near the top, or an address outside the area we cover. Check where you rank first, and if you think we missed you, get in touch.

How far is each one from you?

Type your suburb or use your location, and we'll show the distance on every card. The order stays the same.