News Item
Residential Resale Market: A Tale of Two May Lockdowns
“Although Ontario
was in a lockdown in both May 2020 and May 2021, the impact they had on
Ottawa’s resale market was quite different - with this year’s number of
transactions being well over the five-year average. Undoubtedly, enhanced
safety measures and vaccine adoption rates have enabled potential Buyers and
Sellers to feel more protected and comfortable in their home buying and selling
process,” states Ottawa Real Estate Board President, Debra Wright.
“Additionally, twice
the number of new listings entered the market in May 2021, compared to last
year at this time, with 2,386 residential properties and 727 condos added to
inventory. This is approximately 50 units more than the five-year average for
new listings,” she adds.
May’s average sale
price for a condominium-class property was $424,843, an increase of 24 per cent
from last year, while the average sale price for a residential-class property
was $741,206, an increase of 35 per cent from a year ago. With year-todate
average sale prices at $736,241 for residential and $420,074 for condominiums,
these values represent a 35 per cent and 21 percent increase over 2020, respectively.*
“With the number of
condominium sales transactions having increased by 85% in May of 2021, over May
of 2020, coupled with the 21% price increase in the same periods, it appears
that the condo market has recovered from the declines experienced early in the
pandemic.”
“For
residential-class properties, price movement is still well above 2020, with 46%
selling over $700K compared to 16% of properties last year at this time - these
percentages are reflected in the sales data for both May and year-to-date. We
observe that month-over-month average price increases for April and May are not
as high as the jumps in value in the first quarter of 2021. While it is still
too early to predict, this may be a sign that the rapid price acceleration we
have been experiencing is easing in the market.”
“As we come out of
this lockdown, we will closely monitor other market factors including the
effects of the increased stress test measures combined with the average
five-year fixed mortgage rates climbing back over two per cent since the
beginning of 2021, and whether pent-up supply will decrease our supply shortage
and eventually bring Ottawa’s real estate market to a more balanced state,”
Wright concludes.
OREB Members also
assisted clients with renting 1,837 properties since the beginning of the year
compared to 1,207 at this time last year. *