RE/MAX Edmonton Real Estate News

Will YEG weather hold? Or should we prepare for second winter?

February in the YEG Real Estate Market carried a familiar theme, inventory.

More and more homeowners are continuing to see the value in listing their residences with MLS, as market prices are tending to remain steady. Market forecasters indicate that the predictable seasonal lull will be drawing to a close in the foreseeable future, as snow continues to melt and temperatures rise in the city.

“Buyers are still taking their time to consider all of their options before purchasing a new home,” Says REALTORS® Association of Edmonton Chair Steve Sedgwick. “But with warmer weather just around the corner, clients are reaching out to their REALTOR® for support as the busy spring buying season approaches.”

The early months of 2016 have seen fluctuations to over 6,000 residential listings on the market, with February closing at 6,682 MLS properties for sale. This total indicates just a 16.2% increase from January, however the year over year numbers show a more impactful 36.5% rise from February of 2015.

Average residential sale prices saw a mild increase in all categories across the board. The category of Duplex/Rowhouses continued to be the market superstars, showing an 8.41% rise to $354,386, up 8.41% from January previous, and a 1.24% from the same time last year. The real surprise in February came from renewed market strength of condominiums, which had lately been showing drops or only negligible rises, yet which had gains of over 8% last month (8.83%) for an average sale price of $247,090. This price tag indicates a minimal year over year drop of 1.32%. Single family homes remained nearly steady from January, a 0.24% increase brought their average to $419,940, which showed a 2.79% drop from February of 2015. The month ended with a total residential sale price average of $363,366, a healthy 6.93% rise month over month and virtually no change in year over year comparisons.

February showed a large climb in reported sales, with 837 by month-end compared to January’s 618. This indicates a 36.5% jump month over month. February of 2015 saw 931 residences sold, which shows a current 10.1% decrease. Explains Sedgwick

“Sales numbers are increasing consistent with seasonal trends. Relative to 2015, potential buyers have more inventory to choose from. Despite this inventory growth, prices have moderated only slightly compared to last year, so home owners and sellers can maintain some confidence that housing prices are remaining stable.”

These remarks are also reflected in days on market averages for the month. The average residence was on the market for 57 days, which shows a year over year increase of 48 days. Despite climbing inventory however, this is a remarkable drop from January’s 71 average days on market. Of particular note, Condominiums averaged 57 days, an even more significant decrease month over month from a previous 85 days.

The Edmonton Real Estate Board has released their sales statistics for May, and while not totally unpredictable, they shows an interesting mix of trends. Though previous months coming into spring have all been strongly affected by inventory, this major factor has started to stabilize in the face of rising list prices.

Though the city currently has nearly 30% more residential properties listed, the market has begun to show signs of plateauing in this trend– which showed a 2% decrease in new listings this May compared to the same time last year.  Now, well into June, this slight decline is expected to continue into the later summer months.

Days on market is a key factor in this slowing trend. With previously skyrocketing inventory, sales were forced to slow, causing an even greater surplus. Now with a saturated market, economy dictated that inventory would eventually begin decreasing.

“As expected, the average days on market is up four days year-over-year and one day over last month at 45. We can expect this number to continue to grow due to slower sales and higher inventory.” describes REALTORS® Association of Edmonton President Geneva Tetrault.

The EREB latest market report details that the May average for days on market was 43 for single family homes, 49 for condominiums, and 45 for row and duplex housing.

However, historically summer is generally the busiest time for real estate, and sales trends are starting to reflect the seasonal change coming into June. May 2015 reported 1,784 residential sales, showing a 12% increase from April 2015. Due to market inventory, year over year trends are still showing decreases in reported sales from the same time last year. Overall residential sales are down 10% when compared with May of  2014, with the exception of duplex and row housing which has increased 4% – likely influenced by Edmonton’s booming infill initiative. Tetrault comments,

“Last month we were down 13% year-over-year in all residential sales. This month we are down less than 10%. We expect this trend of increased sales to continue as confidence in the stability of the market grows.”

Tetrault goes on to explain current sales figures,

“We are still seeing multiple offers in popular price brackets. The fact that we haven’t seen a decline in prices is giving buyers more assurance. They are venturing back into the market with the feeling that prices won’t plummet any time soon.”

Sale prices showed a steady incline well into May, with the overall residential average at $381,111, a 2% increase from the same time last year. Single family dwellings showed a 3% increase whilst condominiums were up 2% year over year. Conversely to inventory sales figures, duplex and row housing showed a slight decline in pricing, down around 2% from May 2014

Tetrault concludes,

“People are continuing to take advantage of low interest rates and a greater selection in the marketplace. We are moving into our busiest season for real estate. Your local REALTOR® can help you find what you are looking for in the neighbourhood that best suits your needs.”

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