The April resale market slow to bloom

Ottawa Real Estate Board - News Release

Ottawa, May 5, 2014 - Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,420 residential properties in April through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® system, compared with 1,569 in April 2013, a decrease of 9.5 per cent.

“There has been a decrease in units sold on a year-to-date comparison of 3.9 per cent, but the Ottawa market continues to remain relatively stable,” says Randy Oickle, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “With typical ‘spring’ weather beginning a lot later this year, it is not unexpected to see the market have a later upswing than normal. That being said, properties sold in April were on the market an average of 45 days, a few days less than what was indicated in March.”

April’s sales included 257 in the condominium property class, and 1,163 in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.), which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.

“Sales have continued at a steady pace upwards since the beginning of the year, with 233 more properties switching hands in April over March. That’s a 19.6 per cent increase since last month,” explains Oickle. “Average sale prices are on par with prices from a year ago, even year-to-date price comparisons remain steady.”

The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in April in the Ottawa area was $374,015, an increase of 0.8 per cent over April 2013. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $258,500, a decrease of three per cent over April 2013. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $399,541, an increase of 0.9 per cent over April 2013. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.

“The spring is a great time to buy or sell real estate, especially with interest rates continuing to remain low,” says Oickle. “Talk to an Ottawa-area REALTOR® today for help with buying and/or selling a home, and you will have an ally from start to finish, and everything in between.”

The Ottawa Real Estate Board is an industry association of over 3,000 sales representatives and brokers in the Ottawa area. Members of the Board are also members of the Canadian Real Estate Association.