 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.
) t8 p0 z1 a" `
/ M9 I; _4 ^$ u& ~+ _2 i" e+ [“That’s a 180-degree twist from what we saw in the month of November,” said outgoing association president Marc Perras.
- g1 p# Z% r C0 N9 k% G7 b
, {- N0 J. s' k% q% [: KThe average price for a single family home dropped by three per cent to $351,870 after remaining flat for two months. That’s $30,000 less than the average price of a single family dwelling at the start of 2008.
, I1 }: @" E- c+ B$ P/ l2 }' ^. n) G9 h2 \ X4 N' v
Condominium prices — which fell more than eight per cent in the previous two months — edged up 1.2 per cent over November.( ~9 e$ G H5 y! g
8 f! B! P% F( c$ UOver the year, condo prices dropped 7.5 per cent from $253,270 to $234,286.& U' d0 ]- ]5 A( X
$ E1 d2 H& [1 w) Z0 G/ u/ A, M' v
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.% S7 r% s2 q i7 u' z
! r$ W2 l- p9 p; }& G) G* s7 X- H+ ^
Residential sales plunged by 29.1 per cent in December to 608. Perras blamed cold weather and global economic uncertainty." E4 c; E; |$ k
/ n+ v: F" P o/ M; s' G
“Who wants to tour homes when both your toes and your portfolio are frozen?” Perras said.
! K9 w x* [3 {& q8 T' x9 X; d5 G; L+ x. ]4 G
Neither Perras, nor incoming president Charlie Ponde would release a resale market forecast for 2009 until a news conference scheduled for Thursday.
3 [7 b2 i) f3 U% |6 ?, I+ Q
D" ^( N# J: r' zBut 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.( v2 ], n9 u( M0 k! w* m$ E
: w3 ^; K# C8 `% v8 o/ t0 m
The year will bring stable average house prices and gradually increasing sales, according to the Royal LePage 2009 Market Survey Forecast.
4 I& k; L1 t n! }) `( ^$ v, M$ p; {5 y F
“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.& U9 R/ C$ l* {. n; R* g7 |2 n
5 |8 ?% R$ }+ ^. g' YThe 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.
) F! c Q) }; k9 C0 G+ y: X' gThe 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.
% a3 J8 E) a; r* x
! G& A0 r) v2 W3 b“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.
( b" w9 y. L0 p( X; j3 E7 z+ ]: Y* U+ H5 c; `* c; G: A
Meanwhile, the Realtors Association of Edmonton will release a recap of the housing market this morning and a forecast of 2009 on Thursday. |
|