We are seeing strong competition among homebuyers today. This is leading to more multiple offer situations and some upward pressure on home prices. This seller market conditions are driving prices upwards in many areas around the country especially for the low-rise market segments.

Ontario - Sales and price up year-over-year in March 2015

Toronto, April 7, 2015 -- Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) President Paul Etherington announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 8,940 sales in March 2015. This result represented an 11% increase compared to March 2014. Sales were up for most major home types, both in the City of Toronto and the surrounding regions. New listings were also up, but by a lesser 5.5%, indicating tighter market conditions.

“Home sales increased compared to last year as the cost of home ownership remained affordable, with lower interest rates going a long way to mitigate the effect of rising home prices. However, a substantial amount of pent-up demand remains in place, especially as it relates to low-rise market segments. This suggests that strong competition between buyers, which has fuelled strong price growth so far this year, will continue to be experienced throughout the spring,” said Mr. Etherington.

In March, the average selling price for all reported transactions was $613,933 – up 10% year-over-year. The MLS® HPI Composite Index, which tracks benchmark homes with the same attributes from one period to the next, was up by 7.9%. Average price growth was strongest for detached homes in the City of Toronto, at 15.9%. Over the same period the detached Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) HPI in the '416' area code increased 7.8%.

The MLS® HPI provides a clear indication of price growth due to market forces - the relationship between demand and supply. Comparing MLS® HPI growth to average price growth provides a sense of the changing mix of home types sold from one period to the next.
"It is clear that seller's market conditions in many parts of the GTA are driving price growth. However, looking at the detached market segment in the City of Toronto in particular, growth in the average selling price outstripped growth in the MLS® HPI. This points to the fact that the mix of detached homes sold this year compared to last has shifted towards more expensive properties," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

Ottawa, April 8, 2015 - Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB) sold 1,208 residential properties in March through the Board’s MLS® system, compared with 1,184 in March 2014, an increase of 2.0%. The five-year average for March sales is 1,236.

“Sales increased month over month, with 356 more properties sold in March over February, a 41.8% increase,” says David Oikle, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “Indications of a fast approaching spring market were noted in February, and these numbers are proof that Ottawa is indeed experiencing an upswing in sales.”

March’s sales included 228 in the condominium property class, and 980 in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, townhouse, 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.

“The average cumulative days on market came in at 83 for the month of March, lower than the average of 99 days in February and 119 days in January indicating that properties are starting to move faster as we enter the second quarter of 2015,” explains Oikle. “Year-to-date sales for the first quarter of 2015 are 1.8% higher than the first quarter of 2014. Average sales price has also increased, ever so slightly, by 0.8%. So far, the 2015 resale market in Ottawa remains steady and strong.”

The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in March in the Ottawa area was $361,572, an increase of 0.7% over March 2014. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $251,666, no change over March 2014. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $387,141, no change over March 2014. While average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time, it should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value, because the average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.

“The hottest segments of our market in March were sales between $300,000 to $400,000, followed by the $200,000 to $300,000 price range,” says Oikle. “Residential two-storey homes continue to be the highest sold property class, followed by bungalows and one-level condos. In addition to residential and condominium sales, OREB members assisted clients with renting 593 properties since the beginning of the year.”

British Columbia - Metro Vancouver home buyers out in force in March

Vancouver, April 1, 2015 - The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver reached 4,060 on the MLS® in March 2015. This represents a 53.7% increase compared to the 2,641 sales recorded in March 2014, and a 32.6% increase compared to the 3,061 sales in February 2015.

Last month’s sales were 26.8% above the 10-year sales average for the month.
"We're seeing strong competition amongst home buyers today. This is leading to more multiple offer situations and some upward pressure on home prices,” Darcy McLeod, REBGV president said. “For sellers, this means that it's taking less time, on average, for your home to sell if you have it priced correctly for today's market."

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Metro Vancouver totalled 5,968 in March. This represents a 13% increase compared to the 5,281 new listings reported in March 2014.

Last month’s new listing count was 4.7% higher than the region’s 10-year new listing average for the month.

The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the REBGV MLS® is 12,376, a 14.5% decline compared to March 2014 and a 4.0% increase compared to February 2015.
“The number of homes for sale today is below what’s typical for this time of year,” McLeod said. “If you’ve been considering putting your property on the market, these market conditions indicate that now may be a good time to list.”

The MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver is currently $660,700. This represents a 7.2% increase compared to March 2014.

The sales-to-active-listings ratio in March was 32.8%. This is the highest that this ratio has been in Metro Vancouver since July 2007.

Sales of detached properties in March 2015 reached 1,711, an increase of 53.3% from the 1,116 detached sales recorded in March 2014, and an 83.4% increase from the 933 units sold in March 2013. The benchmark price for a detached property in Metro Vancouver increased 11.2% from March 2014 to $1,052,800.

Sales of apartment properties reached 1,627 in March 2015, an increase of 47.1% compared to the 1,106 sales in March 2014, and an increase of 65.7% compared to the 982 sales in March 2013. The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 3.3% from March 2014 to $390,200.

Attached property sales in March 2015 totalled 722, an increase of 72.3% compared to the 419 sales in March 2014, and a 67.1% increase from the 432 attached properties sold in March 2013. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 4.9% between March 2014 and 2015 to $484,900.

Alberta - Edmonton and Area Average Price Still Up

Edmonton, April 2, 2015 - Despite a decline in all residential sales over those reported in March of 2014, last month saw continued growth of residential prices for the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area CMA of 3%. The average sales price of a single family home was $438,880 - up 1.5% y/y; condo was $249,841 - up 1.2% y/y; and duplex/rowhouse was $354,022 - up 6.9% y/y.

Sales are down in all categories except duplex/rowhouse which are up over 6%. Single family sales were 876 down 4.5% over last March (917 reported). 416 condos sold last month compared to 474 in March 2014. All residential sales for March were reported as 1,453, down 6.5% from 1,554 reported last year.

“The fact that our prices did not have the dramatic increases seen over the past few years in other cities like Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver means we have not experienced the same overvaluation.” REALTORS® Association of Edmonton President Geneva Tetreault explains, “That is why our prices are not taking the same hit even though our inventory is way up and sales are slightly down. A more accurate valuation should keep our average prices more stable.”

March 2014 had 14 million-dollar plus sales (30 YTD). March 2015 had 8 million dollar plus sales (19 YTD). “Last year we saw a dramatic increase in sales of homes priced over a million. Even though the number of those high price sales are down this year, our average price is up. That is a good sign that we are not seeing our average prices inflated,” says Tetreault. “The big story continues to be the increase in inventory. We ended 2014 with a fairly low inventory. The influx of new listings means that buyers now have the opportunity to be a little more choosey. Having a REALTOR® help you navigate the market is always a wise decision, particularly in a complex market like ours.” Residential listings are up over 31% from last March with 3,152 new listings coming on to the MLS® System in the Edmonton CMA. That left us with an ample inventory of 5,944 properties for sale.

Rural areas seem to be seeing the same trends with total rural sales down 8% from 156 reported in March 2014 to 143 reported this year. Rural listings are also up, but only by 12%, a much smaller margin than the Edmonton CMA. Over 699 million dollars in residential sales through the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton occurred in March 2015.

Quebec – Montréal area residential real estate market: March was the most active month in two years

Île-des-Sœurs, April 8, 2015 - The Greater Montréal Real Estate Board (GMREB) has just released its most recent residential real estate market statistics for the Montréal Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), based on the real estate brokers’ Centris® provincial database. In total, 4,495 residential sales were concluded in March 2015, representing a 6 per cent increase compared to March 2014 and the most active month of the past two years.

“The effects of the recent decreases in mortgage rates were finally felt on the real estate market, as many consumers were convinced that this is an opportune time to buy a property,” said Diane Ménard, Vice President of the GMREB Board of Directors.

Geographically, all of the main areas of the Montréal CMA registered an increase in sales in March 2015 except for the North Shore. The South Shore stood out with a 17% increase in sales compared to March of last year, and the Island of Montréal also turned in a solid performance as sales rose by 7.0%. The areas of Laval and Vaudreuil-Soulanges both registered a sales increase of 2.0% compared to March 2014. On the North Shore, the decrease in sales was at 5.0%

By property category, sales of condominiums and single-family homes throughout the CMA both increased by 7.0% in March. Plex sales moved in the opposite direction, with 7 per cent fewer transactions compared to March of last year.

In terms of prices across the CMA, the three property categories recorded a similar increase of 2.0%, with a median price of $280,000 for single-family homes, $230,000 for condominiums and $430,000 for plexes.

Finally, the number of active listings on the real estate brokers’ Centris® system continued its upward trend, as in March 2015, there were 5.0% more properties for sale than a year earlier in the metropolitan area.