 鲜花( 7)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
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.7 i% `9 Y; b% {% p; L$ K
/ Q/ j1 M7 s2 H7 v2 G2 `& f
“That’s a 180-degree twist from what we saw in the month of November,” said outgoing association president Marc Perras.
6 y8 e. w7 i# o& u+ J( M. v/ m: T. p E, O. {
The average price for a single family home dropped by three per cent to $351,870 after remaining flat for two months. That’s $30,000 less than the average price of a single family dwelling at the start of 2008.; O2 X7 H& J' K; b' L
5 a; p$ s5 |- S$ E, z- ]
Condominium prices — which fell more than eight per cent in the previous two months — edged up 1.2 per cent over November.
% D2 N' m6 v- M9 i! Z$ ~* s$ b' e- B* @7 @7 D+ j
Over the year, condo prices dropped 7.5 per cent from $253,270 to $234,286.) U9 i1 t. H/ M8 \7 e- \
- q/ B9 t/ o& ] \) G
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 O% z3 k8 U- @
1 ^" A+ P8 S% |
Residential sales plunged by 29.1 per cent in December to 608. Perras blamed cold weather and global economic uncertainty.: J* D5 y, P* v
; ?# U$ H1 o5 G: L3 q& V“Who wants to tour homes when both your toes and your portfolio are frozen?” Perras said.# D k+ h, } {! S! Y
1 L+ X* {) L" |* d( I2 a
Neither Perras, nor incoming president Charlie Ponde would release a resale market forecast for 2009 until a news conference scheduled for Thursday.
% S& q9 A8 g# }7 ~, h' X( t$ P* [$ @* X6 A' _
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." x$ t5 K; s+ S* Q9 N2 }
7 H4 B+ C Z& r" u3 BThe year will bring stable average house prices and gradually increasing sales, according to the Royal LePage 2009 Market Survey Forecast.
& j& `$ Q& \6 G1 q9 A
! `) Y" O" N# e, i% t* V2 N$ Q$ H3 V“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.& y+ M4 }4 |- Z* M1 h6 ~
! u& o5 G' N, c, U) \- ?- w3 U
The report predicts the average local house price to hold steady at $333,000 this year. The number of homes sold is expected to increase by three per cent to 17,825 units, it said.
9 Z+ u ~3 w8 g2 HThe company added that a glut of homes that burdened the market shrank in 2008 and will get smaller in 2009, putting Edmonton in a balanced market.
. S( u; s* c$ ?! ], J
- s4 V4 l* ~' ?5 H“Nationally, Canadian average house prices are forecast to dip by three per cent from last year to $295,000, while transactions are projected to fall to 416,000 (–3.5 per cent) unit sales in 2009,” the report said.8 _/ E* _1 ?! e( k$ n/ n
' t* u8 d4 l% k5 t+ T; vMeanwhile, the Realtors Association of Edmonton will release a recap of the housing market this morning and a forecast of 2009 on Thursday. |
|