Ottawa's resale market lands softly in January's deep freeze
Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 589 residential properties in
January through the Board's Multiple Listing Service® system, compared with 594
in January 2013.
"Residential sales this January were virtually identical
to January 2013. Our members sold five more freehold residential properties and
10 fewer residential condos. Statistically, the difference is less than one per
cent," says President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board, Randy Oickle. "The market
activity is encouraging for homeowners considering the deep freeze Ottawa
experienced this past month - a time when people are more apt to stay in and
stay warm instead of venturing out to search for a home."
January's sales
included 126 in the condominium property class, and 463 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 that are co-operatives, life
leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other
residential properties.
"The number of properties listed in January more
than doubled the amount from the previous month - a normal occurrence at the
beginning of the year as the holidays draw to a close and people begin to plan
for the year ahead," explains Oickle. "Interest rates continue to be low, with
some whisperings of the rates decreasing and not increasing, as had been
predicted in the last half of 2013. The Ottawa resale market has remained
steady. There have been no major increases or decreases in sales or prices
notwithstanding the government's intervention in mortgage rules over a year
ago."
The average sale price of residential properties, including
condominiums, sold in January in the Ottawa area was $346,744, an increase of
one per cent over January 2013. The average sale price for a condominium-class
property was $265,775, a decrease of 1.1 per cent over January 2013. The average
sale price of a residential-class property was $368,779, an increase of 0.9 per
cent over January 2013. The Board cautions that average sale price information
can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an
indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The
average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all
properties sold.
The Ottawa Real Estate Board is an industry association
of approximately 3,000 sales representatives and brokers in the Ottawa area.
Members of the Board are also members of the Canadian Real Estate Association.