Market Watch - Spring Sales Continue to Increase as The Market Warms

12-04-2017 System Administrator April 2017 0 Comments

We generally see activity in the housing market start to increase at this time of year Buyers can look forward to more inventory to choose from and sellers can count on more buyers in the marketplace.

A shortage of residential property listings coupled with strong demand, particularly for condos and townhomes, continued to impact the housing market in March. It’s still important to emphasize that price and conditions vary from neighbourhood to neighbourhood.

Ontario – Tight Market Conditions Continue in March

Toronto, April 5, 2017 -- Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 12,077 residential sales through TREB's MLS® System in March 2017. This result represented a 17.7% increase compared to the 10,260 sales reported in March 2016. For the TREB market area as a whole, annual sales growth was strongest for condominium apartments and detached houses.

The number of new listings also increased on a year-over-year basis, at 17,051 – a 15.2% increase compared to March 2016. The strongest growth in new listings was experienced in the detached market segment. While new listings were up strongly compared to last year, the rate new listings growth was still lower than the rate of sales growth. As a result, GTA market conditions continued to tighten.

"It has been encouraging to see that policymakers have not implemented any knee-jerk policies regarding the GTA housing market. Different levels of government are holding consultations with market stakeholders and TREB has participated and will continue to participate in these discussions. Policy makers must remember that it is the interplay between the demand for and supply of listings that influences price growth," said Mr. Cerqua.

Strong competition between buyers continued to cause high levels of price growth in all major market segments. The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) Composite Benchmark Price was up by 28.6% year-over-year. For the TREB market area as a whole, the average selling price was up by 33.2%, with similar annual rates of growth in the low-rise and condominium apartment segments.

"Annual rates of price growth continued to accelerate in March as growth in sales outstripped growth in listings. A substantial period of months in which listings growth is greater than sales growth will be required to bring the GTA housing market back into balance. As policy makers seek to achieve this balance, it is important that an evidence-based approach is followed," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.


OTTAWA, April 5, 2017 - Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,485 residential properties in March through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® System, compared with 1,160 in March 2016, an increase of 28%. The five-year average for March sales is 1,240.

“The busy spring selling season descended upon Ottawa early this year,” remarks Rick Eisert, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “Unit sales for March marked the second-best on record, only 13 units down from the record set in March 2010. We’re also starting to see properties move faster, with the average cumulative days on market sitting at 82 days. With all these positive numbers, it’s still important to emphasize that price and conditions vary from neighbourhood to neighbourhood.”
 
March’s sales included 314 in the condominium property class, and 1,171 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.
 
“We’re seeing a lot more multiple offers than we’ve experienced in a while, mostly due to lower inventory levels,” says Eisert. “The number of properties listed in March also experienced a decrease over last year, and is about 100 units shy of the five-year listing average for March.”
 
The average sale price of a residential-class property sold in March in the Ottawa area was $415,467, an increase of 5.3% over March 2016. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $272,597, an increase of 5.3% over March 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.
 
“We’re seeing a trend since the beginning of the year, with 50 properties sold over $1 million in the first quarter of 2017, compared to only 22 in the first quarter of 2016,” explains Eisert. “Again this month, a higher number of properties in the over $1 million price range were sold. These gains were in both the residential and condominium property classes, with seven more residential units and four more condo units sold this year over last year. These high-end property sales are taking place throughout the market with Rockcliffe Park, The Glebe, and Westboro leading the way.”
 
“The two most active price points in the residential market in March were the $300,000 to $399,999 and the $400,000 to $499,999 range, accounting for 53.7% of the market. Within the condo market, the most active price range was in the $150,000 to $249,999, accounting for 51.2% of the market,” says Eisert. “In addition to residential and condominium sales, OREB Members assisted clients with renting 639 properties since the beginning of the year.”


British Columbia –  - Demand for homes continues to outpace supply in Metro Vancouver

A shortage of residential property listings coupled with strong demand, particularly for condos and townhomes, continued to impact Metro Vancouver’s housing market in March.

 Residential property sales in the region totalled 3,579 in March 2017, a decrease of 30.8% from the 5,173 sales recorded in record-breaking March 2016 and an increase of 47.6% compared to February 2017 when 2,425 homes sold.

Last month’s sales were 7.9% above the 10-year sales average for the month.

“While demand in March was below the record high of last year, we saw demand increase month-to-month for condos and townhomes,” Jill Oudil, Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) president said. “Sellers still seem reluctant to put their homes on the market, making for stiff competition among home buyers.”

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Metro Vancouver totalled 4,762 in March 2017. This represents a decrease of 24.1% compared to the 6,278 units listed in March 2016 and a 29.9% increase compared to February 2017 when 3,666 properties were listed.

This is the lowest number of new listings in March since 2009.

The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the MLS® system in Metro Vancouver is 7,586, a 3.1% increase compared to March 2016 (7,358) and a 0.1% decrease compared to February 2017 (7,594).

The sales-to-active listings ratio for March 2017 is 47.2%, a 15-point increase over February. Generally, analysts say that downward pressure on home prices occurs when the ratio dips below the 12% mark for a sustained period, while home prices often experience upward pressure when it surpasses 20% over several months.

“Home prices will likely continue to increase until we see more housing supply coming on to the market,” Oudil said.

The MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver is currently $919,300. This represents a 0.8% decrease over the past six months and a 1.4% increase compared to February 2017.

Sales of detached properties in March 2017 reached 1,150, a decrease of 46.1% from the 2,135 detached sales recorded in March 2016. The benchmark price for detached properties is $1,489,400. This represents a 5.0% decrease over the past six months and a one% increase compared to February 2017.

Sales of apartment properties reached 1,841 in March 2017, a decrease of 18.3% compared to the 2,252 sales in March 2016.The benchmark price of an apartment property is $537,400. This represents a 5.2% increase over the past six months and a 2.1% increase compared to February 2017.

Attached property sales in March 2017 totalled 588, a decrease of 25.2% compared to the 786 sales in March 2016. The benchmark price of an attached unit is $685,100. This represents a 1.3% increase over the past six months and a 1.4% increase compared to February 2017.

Alberta -  Spring sales continue to increase as the market warms

Edmonton, April 4, 2017 --In March, 1,474 MLS® system listed properties sold in the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), which is an increase of 31.8% over February 2017, and an increase of 1.8% relative to March 2016. New listings were also up this month to 3,080, an increase of 26.7% compared to February 2017 and increase of 1.4% in March 2016.

“We generally see activity in the housing market start to increase at this time of year,” says James Mabey, REALTORS® Association of Edmonton Chair. “Buyers can look forward to more inventory to choose from and sellers can count on more buyers in the marketplace.”

Average prices are increasing in all categories compared to February 2017. The all residential average unit sales price was $371,680, which is up 3.1%. The average price of a single family home was $439,139, which is an increase of 3.0%. Duplexes and rowhouses increased 0.41%, to an average sale price of $348,806. Relative to March 2016, the average selling price of a single family home increased 0.49% and the average selling price of a duplex/rowhouse increased 3.2%. Condominium average prices increased to $242,632, an increase of 3.86% compared to February 2017. Unit sales of condominiums also increased, from 357 in February to 398 in March.
 
“It is promising to see positive movement in the condo market. We have seen a large increase in both new and resale inventory, so it is good to see sales starting to follow suit,” says Mabey.

Overall, average DOM for all residential properties in March was 57, which is a decrease from 65 days in February 2017, and an increase compared to March 2016 at 53 average days. Condominiums average DOM decreased from 74 days in February 2017 to 67 days. Duplex/rowhouses average DOM decreased as well, from 80 days in February 2017 to 62 days in March, which was identical to March 2016. Single family homes decreased from 58 days in February 2017 to 50 days in March, which was one day longer than March 2016 at 49 days.

 




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