Consumer confidence results in higher unit sales in July
Friday, August 3rd, 2012Edmonton, August 2, 2012: The average* price of resale residential property softened in July according to figures released by the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton today. The all-residential average price dropped from $342,014 in June to $335,501 in July (down 1.9%). The average single family detached price in the service area of the Edmonton Multiple Listing Service® was down 2.3%, the average condominium price was down 2.1% and the duplex/row house price was off 3.25%.
“Housing prices continue to follow seasonal patterns but residential unit sales are 3.6% higher than last July,” said REALTORS® Association of Edmonton President Doug Singleton. “That being said, the price drops are minimal and still about 5% higher than they were at the beginning of the year.”
There were 2,801 residential properties listed in July with 1,624 sales and the average days-on-market was up one at 52 days. The sales-to-listing ratio was stable, moving slightly from 58.4% in June to 58.0%. Eager first-time buyers are snapping up homes listed below the median price of $325,000 and reducing the inventory of lower-priced homes. A steady stream of new listings helped the residential inventory remain solid with 7,684 properties available, especially at the higher-priced end of the market.
The number of single family homes sold in the $450,000 or higher range is up about 26% in 2012 as compared to the past five years. This trend is expected to continue for the rest of the year. Homes in this range also sold faster this year than in previous years. Days-on-market was the lowest it has been in five years at just 40 days in 2012 and the spread between the list and sold prices was lower at 2.3%.
“Persistent low mortgage rates, job stability and higher average incomes in Edmonton result in consumer confidence which has opened up the higher end of the market,” said Singleton. “Many of these sellers are moving up and do not want to carry two properties. They need to sell so that they can close on the new property; so they are doing all they can to ensure a reasonable but quicker sale. The increased inventory at the higher end is creating some pressure on sellers to keep their list prices reasonable. Once again, consumer confidence and access to low cost financing is driving the upper end of the market even while providing buying opportunities for first-time buyers.”
There have been 64 sales of properties over $1 million so far this year as compared to 66 in all of 2011. Those top end properties sometimes take over a year to sell but the average DOM is just 72 days; down from 78 last year.
