Chilly, cloudy weather and low inventory did nothing to dampen a steamy Ottawa resale market in November, according to the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
Board members sold 1,288 residential properties in November through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system, up almost 11 per cent compared to the same month last year. In keeping with a now-long-running trend, condo sales had a larger percentage growth than other properties. Overall sales of both types of properties exceeded the five-year average of 1,133 properties for November.
“Even with the typical winter slowdown, Ottawa’s home resale market still experienced a relatively brisk pace in November,” said board president Dwight Delahunt in a statement. “Our inventory is not having a chance to build as it is being absorbed as quickly as it comes on the market. That’s why there are so many sales every month even though the supply stock is low.”
Prices up again
The average price of a non-condo property hit $501,201 in November, the second time this year that the half-million-dollar mark has been exceeded in Ottawa’s resale market. The price was 16.9 per cent higher than in the same month last year.
Condominiums sold for an average of $313,734 in November, an increase of just under 10 per cent from last year.
“Prices have increased, and therefore there is shortage of units available in the lower end price range of both condos and residential properties,” he added.
High-end homes selling briskly
In a continuing trend for 2019, high-end resale homes in Ottawa saw a substantial percentage increase in November. The Ottawa Real Estate Board reports that, while the actual numbers were low, sales of homes in the $750,000 to $1 million range jumped almost 59 per cent over the same month last year, from 24 to 65. In the $1-million-plus category, sales almost doubled, from 15 to 29.
“Year-to-date totals show the larger picture with a 41-per-cent increase in the $750,000-$1 million range… and a 30 per cent increase in the $1-million-plus range,” said Delahunt.
It all points to Ottawa’s robust resale market and economy, including a steady increase in prices that, year-to-date in 2019, have grown nine per cent. That compares to an average of less than two per cent for 11 Canadian cities reported by Teranet-National Bank in October.
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