Posts from December 2014

Re/Max has release their annual ‘Housing Market Outlook Report’ forecasting what 2015 has in store for Canadian markets, as well as the after-effects from the past year.

All regions of the nation are presently showing gains in price, and many showed increases in all categories of inventory. Edmonton and Calgary, alongside Toronto and Vancouver, have been highlighted as major areas of growth. Expectations based on current trends are for housing prices to either plateau or rise moderately, with no expectations of any decreases on the horizon.

Factors to be accounted for in 2015 include a projected GDP rise of 2.5%, as predicted by the Bank of Canada, along with minor increases in employment rates and wages, as well as a nationwide population increase of between 260-285,000 new permanent residents. These economic elements are all expected to have a positive impact on upcoming real estate trends.

Economic factors to consider in 2015. Credit: Remax Outlook Report

We can see these major trends echoed in the Edmonton market specifically, as well as the contribution of it’s own unique factors, such as an increase in westward migration. The report estimates around 30,000 new residents have settled into Edmonton’s census metropolitan area in the past year, increasing housing demands by about 10%. This pressure on supply has caused buyers to consider higher price points, and caused exponential growth in the condominium market.

Along with condo sales and development, the other burgeoning Edmonton market not to be ignored is the luxury homes category, which saw sales records broken each year for the past three years. According to the document,

“the Realtors Association of Edmonton reported a 29 per cent increase in sales over $1 million compared to last year.”

The popularity of homes over $1 million are the trend to be watching in the new year. There is also an expectation for headway on mixed-use community developments with “residential, retail and commercial components” which will be considered priority for the new, younger demographic of citizens as the provinces average age continues to decrease. Sale prices in the city are predicted to steadily climb, about 4 %, with similar levels of inventory expected to be maintained.

CLICK HERE to view properties available for sale in your area. The extensive 38 page report can be viewed HERE in its entirety as a PDF.

The EREB has released their latest market report, and the last one we will see for the year.

As 2014 is comes to a close the Edmonton real estate market has slowed only negligibly and remains resilient despite expected seasonal cooling. Market spikes showed some plateauing throughout November, but REALTORS® Association of Edmonton President Greg Steele assures us,

 “The housing market has been very strong and robust this year. We are expecting to see continued growth in housing sales for some time, but at a slower and more stable pace.”

Dropping temperatures in the city aren’t stopping motivated sellers this winter. Image Credit: Hendrik Slegtenhorst

According to MLS figures the average residential sales price for November was $381,371,  showing an increase of over 4% from the previous month, and an almost 10% growth in year-over-year comparisons. Single family dwellings averaged out at $442,884 for November (a 3.76% rise) however condominiums showed a minimal 2% sale price drop to $255,167, which is still a 5.3% price increase from the previous year. Total residential sales are up 11% from November of 2013. 

While sale prices remain strong, inventory saw a decrease as fall came to a close, with 1137 properties sold in November in contrast to 1505 sales in October. Total inventory is down 12%, however the year-over-year decrease is only about 4%. The benefit to this slight drop in supply has been the decrease in total days on market as buyers snap up residential listings. Last year at this time we saw on average 57 days on market, whereas this past November residences were sold in an average of 54 days. Edmonton condominiums, with an average of only 12 days on the market, are exceeding expectations in this category possibly due to the minor drop in prices we have seen recently. 

Steele remains confident in the market as we come into the new year,

“It has been a great year for Real Estate. As we do every year, we expect things to cool off as the temperature drops, but we always have new homes listed and sold over the winter months. People move when life happens, which does not necessarily correlate with warm weather.”

CLICK HERE to search for available properties in the Edmonton area or to connect with a local realtor.