The Canadian real estate market continued to show increases in listings, sales and average sale price when compared to the same month last year, according to statistics released today by the REALTORS® Association.

The average annual rate of price growth remained strong in the third quarter, despite the upward trend in completions and active listings. The pace of sales remained brisk, keeping sellers' market conditions in place.

Ontario - Healthy fall market continues in November

Toronto, December 6, 2011 - Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 7,092 residential transactions in November – up 11% compared to November 2010. At the same time, the number of new listings was up by 14% compared to last year.

While the condominium market reported 5,770 transactions in the third quarter of 2011, representing a 24% increase over the same period in 2010. The average selling price increased by almost 9% to $333,352.

"Condominium apartments have accounted for about one-quarter of total existing home sales in the GTA this year. This share is expected to increase moving forward, as new home sales and construction has become increasingly driven by high-rise construction," said Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) President Richard Silver.
 
“We have seen strong annual sales growth through the 2011 fall market. The increase in transactions has been broad-based, with strong growth across low-rise and high-rise home types throughout the Greater Toronto Area,” said TREB President Richard Silver. “The market has also become better supplied, with annual new listings growth outstripping that of sales. As this trend continues into 2012, we will see more balanced market conditions.”

The average price for a residential home was $480,421 in November, representing an increase of almost 10% in comparison to $437,494 in November 2010.

"Despite strong price growth this year, the housing market remains affordable in the GTA," said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis. "The correct method of assessing affordability is to consider the share of the average household’s income that is dedicated to mortgage principal and interest, property taxes and utilities. Currently, this share remains in line with generally accepted lending guidelines. Given this positive affordability picture, average price growth is forecast to continue in 2012, albeit at a more moderate pace."

Ottawa, December 5, 2011 - Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,020
residential properties in November compared with 940 in November 2010, an increase of 8.5%. The five-year average for November sales is 881.

Of those 1,020 sales, 244 were in the condominium property class, while 776 were 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.

“Last month was the best November on record for resale home sales in Ottawa. The last time we saw sales numbers anywhere close to that number was in 2001. It speaks well for the stability of our market that even in the quieter months of the year, our market is still thriving,” said Board Past President Joanne Tibbles. “The number of properties available for sale is higher than at this time last year, indicating that homeowners are confident that it’s a good time to put their home on the market, and based on these great sales numbers, buyers are also confident, especially as interest rates remain stable,” she added.

The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in November in the Ottawa area was $347,795, an increase of 7.3% over November 2010. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $265,800, nearly unchanged from November 2010. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $373,577, an increase of 9.2% over November 2010.

British Columbia – Steady demand for homes heading into the holidays

Fraser Valley, December 2, 2011 - November property sales in the Fraser Valley are up slightly compared to last year and didn’t experience the usual month-over-month seasonal decline. The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board processed 1,120 sales in November, an increase of 3% compared to the 1,084 sales during the same month last year and a decrease of 2% compared to 1,139 sales in October.  In the last decade, sales decreased on average 9% from October to November.

Board president, Sukh Sidhu says, “Given the time of year, Fraser Valley is experiencing steady buying activity with notable month-over-month increases in the sale of homes with an attractive price point.

While sales remained stable, inventory decreased from October to November, typical for the time of year. The board posted 1,926 new properties in November, an increase of 9% compared to November of last year and a decrease of 23% compared to October. November finished with 9,471 active listings in the Fraser Valley, 5% more than the same month last year and 5% less than October’s 10,005 listings.
 
Sidhu says, “Even with fewer listings coming on stream, buyers can still take advantage of almost nine months of inventory, which is putting downward pressure on prices in certain areas and property types.”  Prices for a typical Fraser Valley apartment are down year-over-year and month-over-month, while both single family detached and townhomes are still showing positive price gains compared to November last year and remain stable compared to October.

In November, the benchmark price of a detached home in the Fraser Valley was $532,086, an increase of 5.4% compared to $504,848 in November 2010 and an increase of 0.3% compared to October.

For townhouses, the benchmark price in November was $327,764, an increase of 2.5% compared to the same month last year when it was $319,623 and up 0.7% compared to October. The benchmark price of apartments in November was $238,461, a decrease of 1.6% compared to November 2010 and a decrease of 2.2% compared to October.
 
Alberta – REALTORS® Association sees stable market with few surprises

Edmonton, December 5, 2011 - There were no surprises in the month-end Multiple Listing Service® sales figures for the month of November released by the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton today. The all-residential average sales price of $321,135 was up less than one percent from last month and last November. Single family detached homes sold on average for $365,734 which is marginally higher than last November and last month. Condominium average price ($227,901) was up 2.3% month-over-month (from $222,778) but down 0.6% from a year ago (from $229,337).

“Prices will vary from neighbourhood to neighbourhood and from property to property,” said REALTORS® Association of Edmonton President Chris Mooney. “But generally your home would have sold last month for about the same amount as it did last year. There was a slight decrease in sales activity compared to last year but listings also decreased reducing the inventory to the level it was at in February.”

There were 1,800 residential properties listed and 1,084 properties sold in November with average day on market equal to 59 days compared to 64 days last November.

 “I almost think that the market is resting after the maelstrom that has occurred in the past five years,” said Mooney. “Compared to other national and global markets this part of the world is a safe haven with stability right now and great prospects in the very near future.” Total MLS® sales for the year-to-date were $5.96 billion compared to just $5.84 billion last November.