Sales and Price Growth Remain Strong in February | Market Watch
Posted By: Rachel Kavanagh
Sales and Price Growth Remain Strong in February | Market Watch – The real estate market in February is supposed to be more of a transition month as homeowners begin to get their home ready for the spring market in March. Instead, sellers took a proactive approach and began placing their homes on the market in February. This approach has worked as buyers jumped at the opportunity, resulting in 7,256 sales, a 45.6% increase over February of 2019. Month over month the increase was larger at 58.4% over January 2020.
Just like sales, the average sale price for jumped by double-digit figures. Overall, the average sale price for all home types in February for the GTA was up by 16.7% to $910,290 over last year. In Markham, the average sale price for all home types increased by 13% to $1,039,755 when compared to the same period last year. In Stouffville, the average sale price for all home types increased by 1.15% to $999,392.
This strong price growth can be directly tied to the lack of available inventory in the market. If buyer demand remains high and inventory cannot keep up with the demand, price growth will continue. New listings witnessed a healthy increase of 7.9% over February 2019, while active listings were down significantly by 33.6% over last year to 8,816.
One month in, the luxury market is expected to see an increase in activity as move-up buyers look to take advantage of the stronger market conditions. Currently, there have been 3 sales over $3 million while 50 properties remain on the market in Markham. In Stouffville, 1 property has been sold over $3 million, while there are currently no properties available for purchase.
WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN?
The real estate market continues to perform well during the first two months of the year with sales and average sale price both closer to 2017 levels. This increase has been due to the lack of inventory and should this trend continue, sales growth will be expected.
Today, the Bank of Canada cut interest rates by 0.5% to maintain economic stability for the country. What this will mean for the real estate market will remain to be seen, but with the interest rate announcement today and the news that the mortgage stress test will also get adjusted in April, this will only give more purchasing power to buyers.
If you are thinking of selling, have Benczik Team Realty provide a free market evaluation to understand where your home sits in today’s market.
Sales and Price Growth Remain Strong in February | Market Watch – written by Benczik Team Realty
