Expected Seasonal Decline Begins in YEG Market
The EREB is currently reporting a mild to moderate dip in sales thus far into the fall season. The Board however is emphasizing that this decline has not affected sale prices, which have slipped less than one percentage point from the same time last year. The drop in sales year-over-year is slightly less negligible at 6.76%. REALTORS® Association of Edmonton Chair Geneva Tetrault has a message of reassurance, “The strength of prices in the Edmonton market is an excellent indication that we are maintaining stability.”
This is the first dip of many we are seeing as the Edmonton CMA moves out of fall and into the winter months. Tetrault goes on to address these relevant seasonal changes,
“We will likely see prices continue to dip as we move into the colder months. Real Estate in Edmonton has a very seasonal trend and colder months always mean fewer sales. We may see buyers take advantage of this trend and benefit from low interest rates while they still can.”
Compared to September 2014, single family home sales and condominiums have both dropped over 9% year-over-year (9.72% and 9.07% respectively), yet duplex/rowhouses, consistently this year’s top seller, maintain their market strength showing numbers rising above 17%.
As mentioned, average sale prices have been negligibly affected, with percentage change remaining in the low single digits. September’s single family home price average was $432, 150, showing a 1.75% drop from the month previous and 0.98% down year-over-year. Condominiums remained fairly stable at $252,953, only dropping 0.68% from August, and 1.05% from last September. Duplex and rowhouses continue to capture the market spotlight, both month over month and year over year figures rising, to an average of $264,203. That shows a 2.76% increase from the month previous and 4.28% from September 2014.
There continues to be no shortage of inventory in the Edmonton CMA with 7,108 properties on market at the time of reporting. This is a slight 1.65% decline from August numbers, but still shows a steep increase of 47.71% over inventory last fall season.
“Buyers continue to see the benefits of a healthy inventory but we haven’t seen many sellers dropping prices significantly in order to compete. Last year’s market and its low inventory made buyers feel pressure to jump into an offer if they found something they like. We are seeing buyers take a little more time in the decision making process this year.” Tetrault continues, explaining her optimism for fall buyers.
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