Ottawa’s resale housing market blazed through April, even if the weather did the opposite.
Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB) sold 2,032 residential properties through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) System. That was a jump of 13.6 per cent over the same month last year, when they sold 1,788 properties. The five-year average for April sales is 1,704.
Ottawa a stable market
“Full employment and reasonable house prices in proportion to incomes are fueling our market,” said OREB president Ralph Shaw in a statement.
And while Ottawa housing continues to be considered affordable, April did a see a jump of over 4 per cent in the price of non-condominium property compared to the same month in 2017. That bumped the average selling price of non-condominium property to $455,212.
Condominium prices climbed a more modest 0.3 per cent compared to the same month last year, reaching an average $269,294 in April.
2018 proving robust
April numbers gave an extra boost to the growth that’s characterized the year to this point. Since January, sales of all classes of property are up an average of 9 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2017.
As in 2017, condos continue to lead the sales charge this year. Growth in condo sales has outstripped other properties four to one.
Inventory still an issue
Despite brisk sales in April, the inventory of resale properties is down sharply over last year, with 23.7 per cent fewer properties of all types available compared to April of last year.
That’s a self-perpetuating situation, as Shaw pointed out: “With our low inventory, potential sellers are reluctant to put their home on the market if they are uncertain of their ability to acquire another property.”
He also pointed to other possible reasons for the lower inventory. They include the introduction of tougher mortgage qualification rules at the beginning of this year.
Related
How the new home market did in April
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