2009 RECORD YEAR FOR RESALE HOMES, DESPITE SLOW START
Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 689 residential properties in December through the MLS® compared with 467 in December 2008, an increase of 47.5%. This brings the total number of residential properties sold through the Board’s MLS® in 2009 to 14,742, up 7.4% from 2008 and setting a new record. The previous record of 14,565 sales was set in 2007. The average price for all of 2009 was $303,888, and increase of 4.9% over 2008. Of December’s sales, 185 were in the condominium property class, while 504 were in the residential property class. “Ottawa’s housing market felt the chill of the global financial crisis last winter, but sales warmed up even before the spring weather arrived, and over the course of the year Ottawa had five record-breaking months of sales. Listing inventory was at a low level throughout 2009, which lead to many multiple-offer situations,” said Board President Pierre de Varennes. “Ottawa’s housing market bounced back very strongly from its brief downturn, and we ended the year ahead of the previous annual sales record, which certainly no one expected back in January,” he added. The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in December in the Ottawa area was $307,807, and increase of 13.1% over December 2008. The average sale price for a condominium class property was $246,062, an increase of 17.9% over December 2008. The average sale price of a residential class property was $330,471, an increase of 12.8% over December 2008. 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 Ottawa Real Estate Board - January 06, 2010) |