November 20, 2008
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Tricity home sales remain favourable relative to the national forecast. Sales of residential properties in Kitchener-Waterloo and area declined 5.7 percent during the first six months of the year, while the total value of those sales increased 0.5 percent to $930 million. The 9.2 percent decline in the sale of single family detached homes was tempered by a 1.3 percent drop in sales of attached homes. While sales to the end of June stand in contrast to the record pace of 2007, results to date in 2008 remain favourable relative to projections by the Canadian Real Estate Association that sales on a national basis are expected to decline by 11.5 percent this year.The decline in home sales was limited to properties selling for less than $225,000. By contrast, there were 2,179 sales of residential properties for more than $225,000 to the end of June, compared to 1,958 for the same period in 2007. Also bucking the slower sales trend was the demand for condominium units, the sales of which increased 7.9 percent to the end of June for a total of 644 sales. In a similar vein, homes selling for more than $500,000 experienced triple digit increases relative to sales one year ago. The average sale price of all homes sold between January and June 2008 jumped 7.5 percent to $264,888 during the first six months of the year. Similarly, the median price of home sales to the end of June increased 6.5 percent to $242,000. The average sale price of single family detached homes to the end of June was $302,905, a 7.9 percent increase. The median sale price of these same properties increased 7.0 percent to $272,000."Residential sales remain healthy despite falling short of the records set last year," says Karen Shartun, President of the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board. "I expect demand for higher priced homes to be the key driver of sales as we work through this period of economic uncertainty." Shartun continues to believe that residential property sales in Kitchener-Waterloo and area will outperform national sales results, demonstrating the consumer confidence in local real estate and an economy that is better positioned to weather the recessionary threats. Other residential real estate sales-related highlights from the first half of 2008 include:
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