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. Courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board

Ottawa Residential Real Estate Market update: 2013 in review

Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 610 residential properties in December through the Board's Multiple Listing Service® system, compared with 615 in December 2012, a decrease of less than one per cent. The five-year average for December sales is 646, with sales from December 2011 and 2009 increasing that average. The total number of homes sold through the Board's MLS® system in 2013 was 13,873, compared with 14,326 in 2012, a decrease of 3.2 per cent. The average sale price for residential properties, including condominiums, sold in 2013 was $357,348, an increase of 1.6 per cent over 2012. "Looking back at the 2013 market, home sales in the first part of the year were, for the most part down, in comparison to the year before," said new President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board, Randy Oickle. "The introduction of tighter mortgage rules in July 2012 largely affected the market well into 2013. However, as the year progressed the market began to pick back up, and then leveled out in November and December. Impending mortgage rate increases may have caused the increase in the second half of 2013, as many first-time home buyers jumped into the market in advance of these increases." December's sales included 145 in the condominium property class, and 465 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 sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in December in the Ottawa area was $340,021, an increase of 0.9 per cent over December 2012. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $245,349, a decrease of 5.1 per cent over December 2012. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $369,543, an increase of three per cent over December 2012. Courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.