Market Watch - Home Buyers Benefitted From a Better Supplied Market in May

We are In the middle of our busiest season for real estate, more sellers are entering the market and are motivated to move their properties before the summer months.

Inventory continued to increase in many areas around the country, and home buyers definitely benefitted from a better supplied market in May, both in comparison to the same time last year and to the first four months of 2017

Ontario –  Active Listings Increase in May

Toronto, June 5, 2017 -- Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 10,196 sales through TREB's MLS® System in May 2017 – down by 20.3% compared to 12,790 sales reported in May 2016. Sales of detached homes were down by 26.3%. Sales of condominium apartments were down by 6.4%.

Active listings – the number of properties available for sale at the end of May – were up by 42.9% compared to the lowest level in 15 years recorded in May 2016, but remained below the average and peak during that period. The number increased considerably for low-rise home types including detached and semi-detached houses and townhouses. Active listings for condominium apartments were down compared to May 2016.

"Home buyers definitely benefitted from a better supplied market in May, both in comparison to the same time last year and to the first four months of 2017. However, even with the robust increase in active listings, inventory levels remain low. At the end of May, we had less than two months of inventory. This is why we continued to see very strong annual rates of price growth, albeit lower than the peak growth rates earlier this year," said Mr. Cerqua.

Selling prices continued to increase strongly in May compared to the same month In 2016. The MLS® HPI Composite Benchmark price was up by 29% year-over-year. The average selling price for all home types combined for the TREB Market Area as a whole was up by 14.9% to $863,910. Year-over-year price increases were greater for condominium apartments compared to low-rise home types. This likely reflects the fact that the low-rise market segments benefitted most from the increase in listings.

"The actual, or normalized, effect of the Ontario Fair Housing Plan remains to be seen. In the past, some housing policy changes have initially led to an overreaction on the part of homeowners and buyers, which later balanced out. On the listings front, the increase in active listings suggests that homeowners, after a protracted delay, are starting to react to the strong price growth we've experienced over the past year by listing their home for sale to take advantage of these equity gains," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

OTTAWA, June 2, 2017 - Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 2,300 residential properties in May through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® System, compared with 1,919 in May 2016, an increase of 19.9%. The five-year average for May sales is 1,946.

“Not only was May 2017 the best May on record for unit sales, it also surpassed the record for highest unit sales in a single month ever; blowing the previous record out of the water by 315 units,” says Rick Eisert, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “One of the reasons for these stellar numbers can be attributed to the condo market, which has really helped strengthen the whole market over the past several months. This is quite evident in May, where units sold increased by 44.6% over May 2016.”
 
May’s sales included 444 in the condominium property class, and 1,856 in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, townhouse, etc.), which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases, and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
 
“Sales activity continued to trend towards a sellers’ market, as evidenced by lower than normal inventory levels and listing averages for May, more multiple offer situations, and fewer days on market, but prices still remain relatively steady,” explains Eisert. “If we were in a true sellers’ market, we would expect to see a much higher spike in prices.”
 
The average sale price of a residential-class property sold in May in the Ottawa area was $436,625, an increase of 7.4% over May 2016. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $270,993, an increase of 2.3% over May 2016. The Board cautions that the average sale price can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The calculation of the average sale price is based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold. Price and conditions will vary from neighbourhood to neighbourhood.
 
“Higher-end residential units in the $750,000+ range continue to outperform sales from last year, especially in the $1 million+ range, where unit sales have almost doubled those in May 2016,” says Eisert. “We are not seeing quite the same trend for condo units though, where there are increases in units sold in almost all price ranges.”
 
“The two most active price points in the residential market continue to be the $300,000 to $399,999 followed by the $400,000 to $499,999 range, combined accounting for 56.4% of the market. Within the condo market, the most active price point was between $150,000 and $249,999, accounting for 50.7% of the market,” says Eisert. “In addition to residential and condominium sales, OREB Members assisted clients with renting 1,551 properties since the beginning of the year.”

British Columbia - BC Home Sales Turn Higher, Inventories at 20-Year Low

Vancouver, May 15, 2017. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 9,865 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in April, down 23.9% from the same period last year. Total sales dollar volume was $7.19 billion, down 25.4% from April 2016. The average MLS® residential price in the province was $728,955, a 2% decrease from the same period last year.

“BC home sales are on an upward trend this spring, led by a sharp increase in consumer demand in the Lower Mainland,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. The seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of home sales was over 106,000 units in April, significantly above the five-year SAAR for April of 89,000 units.

The supply of homes for sale declined 17% from April 2016. On a seasonally adjusted basis, active residential listings have declined 50% since 2012 and are now at their lowest level in over 20 years. The imbalance between supply and demand is continuing to drive home prices higher in most regions, further eroding affordability.

Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume was down 31.8% to $21.3 billion, when compared with the same period in 2016. Residential unit sales declined 25.0% to 30,757 units, while the average MLS® residential price was down 9.2% to $692,220.

Alberta - Unit sales up 25% with prices holding steady

Edmonton, June 2, 2017 -- In the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), all residential unit sales for May 2017 are up 25.37% relative to April 2017, and down 2.78% compared to May 2016. Relative to this period of time last year, the year-to-date sales are up 38.19% month over month and 2.70% year over year.

Average prices for single family home increased both month over month and year over year, increasing to $440,907, up 0.33% compared to April 2017 and up 0.26% relative to May 2016. Condominium average price was $250,818 in May 2017, a decrease of 2.69% compared to April 2017 and a decrease of 0.67% compared to May 2016. Average prices for duplexes/rowhouses and condominiums decreased in May. Duplexes and rowhouses average price decreased to $344,406, a 3.75% decline from April 2017 and 1.52% lower than May 2016.

“We are In the middle of our busiest season for real estate,” says James Mabey, REALTORS® Association of Edmonton Chair. “More sellers are entering the market and are motivated to move their properties before the summer months, which provides the best selection of properties for buyers who are actively looking and taking advantage of the increased number of listings typical for this time of year.”

Inventory continued to increase for May and is up 10.16% over April 2017, increasing 4.33% relative to May 2016. New listings increased 16.21% relative to April 2017, and increased 15.09% compared to May 2016.

Average days on market remained stable, decreasing slightly for most categories in May. The average for single family homes was 48 days on market, identical to April 2017, and down marginally compared to 51 average days in May 2016. Condominiums increased to 62 days on market from 60 days in April 2017 and May 2016. Average days on market for duplexes and rowhouses decreased to 61 days, compared to 64 days in April 2017 and increased compared to 59 days in May 2016.