Although there isn’t a huge increase compared to September’s real estate numbers, Ottawa buyers and sellers have proven that there’s still a demand to buy and sell.
Here are the October 2020 numbers:
- Total number of units sold: 2,146 – up 34% from 1,604 in October 2019.
- Five-year average unit sales for October: 1,515.
“We are heading into the colder months, the second wave of the pandemic is upon us, and yet Ottawa’s resale market continues to hold steady,” observes Ottawa Real Estate Board President Deb Burgoyne.
“While the October average price gains, number of sales, and new listings coming onto the market were all down from September, demand persists, and the number of sellers choosing to enter the market remains strong. With 1,937 residential listings and 708 condo units added to the housing stock in October, this is a 48% and 70% respective increase in new listings over last year at this time,” she adds.
Here are the specifics for each property class:
- Number of residential-class properties sold: 1,665 – up 34% from 1,089 in October 2019.
- Average sale price of a residential-class property: $603,253 – up 25% from $452,440 in October 2019.
- Number of condominium-class properties sold: 481 – up 22% from 375 in October 2019.
- Average sale price of a condominium-class property: $368,936 – up 16% from $309,902 in October 2019.
What’s Going On With Condos?
It seems like the condo inventory has increased compared to last October, meaning more people are looking for residential properties. What’s causing this shift in bigger homes and more space?
“The condominium market is on our watchlist. Inventory for condo units increased 15% over last October, while inventory for residential properties is down 46%. This is an inverse relationship compared to the beginning of 2020 when condo supply was depleting much quicker than residential,” reports Burgoyne.
“The shift in the condo market occurred around June. There has been a lot of speculation about changing buyer behaviour and preferences due to our pandemic reality with homeowners wanting home offices and gym space, for example. One could extrapolate or conclude that buying preferences may be shifting towards a desire for properties with more square footage than this property type offers. Particularly, due to the sheer number of employees working remotely for the foreseeable future, commute times may continue to be less of an issue.”