Home sales up compared to same time last year.
August home sales through the Multiple Listing System (MLS® System) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) were down 0.8 per cent compared to last month and up 4.8 per cent compared to August of last year.
A total of 505 residential properties sold in August compared to 482 the same time last year. The average days it took to sell a home in August was 28 days, compared to 26 days in August 2017.
“For the first time this year we saw monthly home sales increase on a year-over-year basis,” says Tony Schmidt, KWAR President. “On a year-to-date basis, we’re still well below last year’s record-breaking number of home sales but still in line with historical averages.”
Residential sales in August included 301 detached (up 5.2 per cent compared to August 2017), and 129 condominium units (up 25.2 per cent) which includes any property regardless of style (i.e. semis, townhomes, apartment, detached etc.). Sales also included 35 semi-detached homes (down 30 per cent) and 33 freehold townhouses (no change).
The average sale price of all residential properties sold in August increased 11.5 per cent to $493,358 compared to the same month a year ago. Detached homes sold for an average price of $583,564 an increase of 13 per cent compared to August of last year. During this same period, the average sale price for an apartment style condominium was $335,827 an increase of 14.1 per cent. Townhomes and semis sold for an average of $350,803 (up 4 per cent) and $401,011 (up 13.6 per cent) respectively.
The median price of all residential properties sold last month was up 10.4 per cent compared to August of last year at $458,000, and the median price of a detached home during the same period increased 18.1 per cent to $543,450.
REALTORS® listed 670 residential properties in K-W and area last month, up 12.7 per cent compared to August of 2017, and 3.4% above the historical (2007-2016) average of 648. The number of active residential listings on the KWAR’s MLS® System to the end of August totalled 917, which is 11.5 per cent higher than August of last year but still significantly below the historical (2007-2016) ten-year average of 1,550 listings for August.
“More homes selling in the higher prices ranges in August were at least partly responsible for the increase in the average sale price,” notes Schmidt. “But strong demand on the buying side combined with low inventory on the listing side is continuing to keep upward pressure on prices.”