Resale Market Continues to Hold Steady.

We are heading into the colder months, the second wave of the pandemic is upon us, and yet The resale market continues to hold steady. 

As the chillier weather and upcoming holiday season approach, it will be interesting to see how the market calibrates. Typically, we start to see a slowdown in home sale activity. Whether that actually transpires is something we can’t predict given the topsy turvy year that is 2020. What I can tell you is that this is not the time to navigate the market on your own; there is too much at stake to venture in without the knowledge and guidance of an experienced REALTOR®.

Ontario - Sales continues it up word trend for the fourth month in a row

Toronto, November 5, 2020 - Home sales in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) were up again year-over-year for the fourth month in a row. Our Members made 10,563 sales as reported through the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board’s MLS® System in October 2020. This was up by 25.1% compared to 8,445 transactions in October 2019.

Sales and new listings reached record levels for the month of October. However, year-over-year growth rates for sales and new listings diverged in some market segments. In the detached market segment, the pace of annual sales growth far outstripped growth in new listings. Conversely, the condominium apartment market segment experienced more than double the new listings compared to October 2019, whereas sales were only up by 2.2% over the same period.

“Competition between buyers of single-family homes, and particularly detached houses, remained strong last month and continued to support double-digit annual rates of price growth in many GTA neighbourhoods. In contrast, condo buyers have benefitted from much more choice compared to last year. Pre-COVID polling had already pointed to an increase in investor selling in 2020. The pandemic only added to this trend with a stall in economic growth and a halt to tourism impacting cashflows for many investors,” said Lisa Patel, TRREB’s President.

The MLS® HPI Composite Benchmark was up by 10.8% on a year-over-year basis in October 2020. The average selling price for all home types combined was $968,318 – up by 13.7% compared to $851,877 in October 2019.

“Year-to-date home sales through October were above last year’s level. The economic recovery in some sectors coupled with low borrowing costs has kept home purchases top-of-mind for many GTA residents. With this being said, we have not accounted for all of the pent-up demand that resulted from the spring downturn. Expect record or near-record home sales for the remainder of 2020,” said Jason Mercer, TRREB’s Chief Market Analyst.

Ottawa’s Resale Market “Steady as She Goes”

Ottawa, November 4, 2020 - Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 2,146 residential properties in October through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® System, compared with 1,604 in October 2019, a year over year increase of 34%. October’s sales included 1,665 in the residential-property class, up 38% from a year ago, and 481 in the condominium-property category, an increase of 22% from October 2019. The five-year average for October unit sales is 1,515.

“We are heading into the colder months, the second wave of the pandemic is upon us, and yet Ottawa’s resale market continues to hold steady,” observes Ottawa Real Estate Board President Deb Burgoyne.

“While the October average price gains, number of sales, and new listings coming onto the market were all down from September, demand persists, and the number of sellers choosing to enter the market remains strong. With 1,937 residential listings and 708 condo units added to the housing stock in October, this is a 48% and 70% respective increase in new listings over last year at this time,” she adds.

October’s average sale price for a condominium-class property was $368,936, an increase of 16% from this time last year, while the average sale price of a residential-class property was $603,253, an increase of 25% from a year ago. With year-to-date average sale prices at $579,026 for residential and $361,666 for condominiums, these values represent a 19% percent increase over 2019 for both property classes.*

“The condominium market is on our watchlist. Inventory for condo units increased 15% over last October, while inventory for residential properties is down 46%. This is an inverse relationship compared to the beginning of 2020 when condo supply was depleting much quicker than residential,” reports Burgoyne.

“The shift in the condo market occurred around June. There has been a lot of speculation about changing buyer behaviour and preferences due to our pandemic reality with homeowners wanting home offices and gym space, for example. One could extrapolate or conclude that buying preferences may be shifting towards a desire for properties with more square footage than this property type offers. Particularly, due to the sheer number of employees working remotely for the foreseeable future, commute times may continue to be less of an issue.”

“As the chillier weather and upcoming holiday season approaches, it will be interesting to see how the market calibrates. Typically, we start to see a slowdown in home sale activity. Whether that actually transpires is something we can’t predict given the topsy turvy year that is 2020. What I can tell you is that this is not the time to navigate the market on your own; there is too much at stake to venture in without the knowledge and guidance of an experienced REALTOR®,” Burgoyne concludes.

In addition to residential and condominium sales, OREB Members assisted clients with renting 2,829 properties since the beginning of the year compared to 2,334 at this time last year.

BC Housing Market Continues Record Pace in October

Vancouver, November 12, 2020 - The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 11,051 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in October 2020, an increase of 43.8% from October 2019. The average MLS® residential price in BC set a record of $812,960, a 12.5% increase from $722,333 recorded the previous year. Total sales dollar volume in August was $8.98 billion, a 61.8% increase over 2019.

“The provincial housing market sustained its blistering pace of activity in October,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “While pent-up demand may be starting to fade, record low-interest rates and a recovering job market are supporting strong sales.”

“A pandemic-driven shift in buyers’ preference for extra space is pushing average prices to record highs as larger value transactions account for a higher share of sales,” added Ogmundson. Prices are also being pushed higher by a lack of inventory. Total provincial active listings continue to trend lower and were close to 14% lower in October 2020 compared to 2019.

Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume was up 29.7% to $58.7 billion, compared with the same period in 2019. Residential unit sales were up 16.3% to 76,140 units, while the average MLS® residential price was up 11.5% to $771,085.  

Alberta - Residential Unit Sales up 26.34% compared to October 2019.

Edmonton, November 2, 2020 - Total residential unit sales in the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) real estate market for October 2020 increased 26.34% compared to October 2019 and decreased 0.21% from September 2020. The number of new residential listings is up year over year, increasing 14.75% from October 2019. New residential listings are down month over month, decreasing 7.43% from September 2020. Overall inventory in the Edmonton CMA fell 12.10% from October of last year and decreased 3.88% from September 2020.

For the month of October, single-family home unit sales are up 38.02% from October 2019 and decreased by 5.89% from September 2020 at 1,118. Condo unit sales increased by 2.37% from October 2019 and decreased by 13.28% from September 2020.

All residential average prices are up to $382,060, a 7.97% increase from October 2019, and up 1.50% from September 2020. Single-family homes sold for an average of $442,854, a 5.05% year-over-year increase from October 2019, and a 0.72% increase from September 2020. Condominiums sold for an average of $231,608, a 1.67% increase year-over-year, and prices are down 1.34% compared to September 2020. Duplex prices increased 2.34% from October 2019, selling at $336,314, which was a 1.23% decrease from September 2020.

“The Edmonton market has seen an increase in year-over-year unit sales, compared to a slight decrease in month-to-month sales,” says REALTORS® Association of Edmonton Chair Jennifer Lucas. “There have also been more sales of single-family homes, condos and duplexes compared to October of last year, while we’ve seen stable or decreasing month over month sales in all markets, which is typical for this time of year. We’re pleased to see year-over-year increases in pricing across all markets, with single-family home pricing up 5.05%, duplexes up 2.34%, and condos up 1.67%.”

Single-family homes averaged 47 days on the market, a thirteen-day decrease from last year. Condos decreased to an average of 58 days on the market, an eighteen-day decrease from last year, while duplexes averaged 50 days on market, a thirteen-day decrease compared to October 2019. Overall, all residential listings averaged 50 days on market, decreasing by 15 days on market year-over-year and three days compared to the previous month.