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EDMONTON — Prices for single-family homes in the Edmonton region dropped while condo prices rallied in December, according to figures released today by the Realtors Association of Edmonton.
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3 H. e8 B+ L1 o8 m“That’s a 180-degree twist from what we saw in the month of November,” said outgoing association president Marc Perras.1 ]8 L: W. b. I
( [% M' i+ b1 I* JThe average price for a single family home dropped by three per cent to $351,870 after remaining flat for two months. That’s $30,000 less than the average price of a single family dwelling at the start of 2008.
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Condominium prices — which fell more than eight per cent in the previous two months — edged up 1.2 per cent over November.
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Over the year, condo prices dropped 7.5 per cent from $253,270 to $234,286.; I/ b' [+ [: g% I& Z9 M
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At the end of December, there were 6,316 homes in inventory. The sales to listing ratio was 46 per cent and average days on market was 65, up two from November.! _0 B. o7 E6 i1 q, x. x# n
* A/ z4 z: ?! HResidential sales plunged by 29.1 per cent in December to 608. Perras blamed cold weather and global economic uncertainty.
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3 Z; x( T7 h- H“Who wants to tour homes when both your toes and your portfolio are frozen?” Perras said.# W' h3 C% [- ?0 H; A' A, t4 u- z
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Neither Perras, nor incoming president Charlie Ponde would release a resale market forecast for 2009 until a news conference scheduled for Thursday.
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- J# Z- [ I0 \But one real estate company predicted Tuesday that after months of sluggish sales and slipping prices, Edmonton’s housing will return to “a normal state” in 2009.3 d5 I1 H$ b8 |4 a$ {4 s$ j8 X
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The year will bring stable average house prices and gradually increasing sales, according to the Royal LePage 2009 Market Survey Forecast." ~: ^7 {9 q0 f: l5 @* X
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“The combination of healthy employment levels, historically low interest rates and good affordability — something the city has not seen in a while — will all bolster Edmonton’s housing resale market in 2009,” said the survey.' Z7 C0 ?+ ]& t- R
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The report predicts the average local house price to hold steady at $333,000 this year. The number of homes sold is expected to increase by three per cent to 17,825 units, it said.
; {( _! v6 x( EThe company added that a glut of homes that burdened the market shrank in 2008 and will get smaller in 2009, putting Edmonton in a balanced market.6 j% [0 x/ o7 B6 M/ I1 A+ |
5 ?8 \5 [, g& M5 q: _“Nationally, Canadian average house prices are forecast to dip by three per cent from last year to $295,000, while transactions are projected to fall to 416,000 (–3.5 per cent) unit sales in 2009,” the report said.
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" X! v. B' d- K3 U3 n3 ~: L7 n+ M5 UMeanwhile, the Realtors Association of Edmonton will release a recap of the housing market this morning and a forecast of 2009 on Thursday. |
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