Market Watch September 2024
Wishing you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving!
Now that the circus has officially set up camp in Ottawa, the government is doing back flips on the trapeze in light of a looming election. Most notably the mortgage rule changes for first time buyers.
- 30-Year Amortization for Insured Mortgages: First-time buyers putting less than 20% down can now extend their amortization to 30 years, resulting in lower monthly payments.
- Increased Cap of $1.5 Million for Insured Mortgages: Buyers can now qualify for homes priced up to $1.5M with less than 20% down, offering them more flexibility in this challenging market.
- All this comes at increased cost to the buyer over the term.
đź“Š Waterloo Region Real Estate Update – September 2024 🏡
- Home sales down 2.1% year-over-year, but detached homes up 9.4%
- Average sale price: $788,944 (↑2.9% from last year)
- Detached homes avg: $910,286 (↑2.3%)
- Active listings: 1,751 (↑21.3%)
- Avg days on market: 28 (↑9 days)
More options for buyers, but sellers may need patience. New government policies could boost the market later in the year and into 2025.
If you are looking to buy or sell and have questions you’d like answered, contact me now! Sell and move forward with confidence!
Problem solver in the real estate market.
Below are September’s Market Reports for Waterloo Region and the GTA.
Enjoy!
Lance
Waterloo Region Sees Decrease in Home Sales for September.
WATERLOO REGION, ON (October 3, 2024) — In September, a total of 521 homes were sold in the Waterloo Region via the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System of the Cornerstone Association of REALTORS® (Cornerstone). This represents a decrease of 2.1 per cent compared to the same period last year and a decline of 23.5 per cent compared to the average number of homes sold in the previous ten years for the same month.
“In September, there was an overall slowdown in home sales, but we continued to see strong demand for detached homes, resulting in an increase in sales for that specific type of property,” said Christal Moura, spokesperson for the Waterloo Region market area. “Meanwhile, buyers have a bit more selection than a year ago as inventory is up, and homes take a little longer to sell. This can mean a less stressful home buying experience, but for sellers, the current market may require more patience or even adjustment in price expectation.”
Total residential sales in September included 336 detached homes (up 9.4 per cent from September 2023), and 95 townhouses (down 22.1 per cent). Sales also included 57 condominium units (down 16.2 per cent) and 32 semi-detached homes (down 3.0 per cent).
In September, the average sale price for all residential properties in Waterloo Region was $788,944. This represents a 2.9 per cent increase compared to September 2023 and a 2.3 per cent increase compared to August 2024.
The average price of a detached home was $910,286. This represents a 2.3 per cent increase from September 2023 and an increase of 2.2 per cent compared to August 2024.
The average sale price for a townhouse was $595,435. This represents a 6.9 per cent decrease from September 2023 and a decrease of 2.7 per cent compared to August 2024.
The average sale price for an apartment-style condominium was $483,331. This represents a decrease of 3.4 per cent from September 2023 and an increase of 4.9 per cent compared to August 2024.
The average sale price for a semi was $654,613. This represents a decrease of 2.9 per cent compared to September 2023 and an increase of 0.1 per cent compared to August 2024.
In September, Cornerstone welcomed policy changes from the federal government. These changes include extending mortgage terms to 30 years for first-time homebuyers and all buyers of new builds and raising the CMHC insurance cap from $1 million to $1.5 million. These changes will come into effect later this year. Combined with anticipated further interest rate cuts, these adjustments could enable more buyers to purchase their first home.
There were 1,313 new listings added to the MLS® System in Waterloo Region last month, a decrease of 6.5 per cent compared to September last year and a 20.0 per cent increase compared to the previous ten-year average for September.
The total number of homes available for sale in active status at the end of September was 1,751 an increase of 21.3 per cent compared to September of last year and 42.2 per cent above the previous ten-year average of 1,232 listings for September.
The total inventory across the market increased by 23.1 percent, resulting in a 3.2-month supply of all property types by the end of September. Condominium apartments had the highest inventory, with 5.5 months’ supply, followed by townhouses with 3.6 months’ supply and detached homes with 2.7 months’ supply. The number of months of inventory represents the time it would take to sell off current inventories at the current sales rate.
The average time it took to sell a home in September was 28 days, which is three days longer than the previous month. In September 2023, it took 19 days for a home to sell, and the five-year average is 18 days.
TRREB: GTA September Home Sales Improve Over Last Year.
TORONTO, ONTARIO, October 3, 2024 – Greater Toronto Area (GTA) home sales increased year-over year in September. Buyers were starting to take advantage of more affordable market conditions brought about by interest rate cuts and lower home prices.
“As buyers take advantage of changes to mortgage lending guidelines and borrowing costs trend lower, home sales will steadily increase in relation to population growth. With every rate cut, a growing number of GTA households will afford a long-term investment in home ownership, including first-time buyers,” said Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) President Jennifer Pearce.
GTA REALTORS® reported 4,996 home sales through TRREB’s MLS® System in September 2024 – up by 8.5 per cent compared to 4,606 sales reported in September 2023. New listings entered into the MLS® System amounted to 18,089 – up by an even greater 10.5 per cent year-over-year. On a seasonally adjusted basis, September sales increased on a monthly basis compared to August, along with new listings.
The MLS® Home Price Index Composite benchmark was down by 4.6 per cent year-over-year in September 2024. The average selling price, at $1,107,291 was down by a lesser one per cent compared to the September 2023 average of $1,118,215. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the average selling price edged up slightly compared to August.
“The annual improvement in September home sales was more than matched by the increase in new listings over the same period. This resulted in a better-supplied market and increased negotiating power for buyers re-entering the market. The ability to negotiate on price, led to moderate year-over-year price declines, particularly in the more affordable condo apartment and townhouse segments, which are popular with firsttime buyers,” said TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer.
“We are pleased with the positive changes to mortgage lending guidelines announced over the past month. The ability for existing mortgage holders to shop around for the best rate without facing the stress test will result in more affordable renewals. Longer amortization periods and the ability to insure mortgages for purchases over $1 million dollars will give home buyers more options as the GTA housing market recovers. TRREB has long been calling for these changes to give buyers more flexibility as they navigate their home buying journey,” said TRREB CEO John DiMichele.
If you are considering buying or selling, contact me anytime to answer your questions, big or small. I’m here to help!
Sell and move forward with confidence!
Lance Nielsen
519-748-7057
Lance@LanceNielsen.com