On balance, a steady year for Ottawa resale homes

Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 620 residential properties in December through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® system compared with 687 in December 2009, a decrease of 9.8 per cent. The total number of residential properties sold through the Board’s MLS system in 2010 was 14,199, down 3.6 per cent from 2009. The average price for 2010 was $327,225, an increase of 7.7 per cent over 2009. Of December’s sales, 192 were in the condominium property class and 428 were in the residential class.

“2010 was an interesting year because of the introduction of the HST. This, and changes to mortgage regulations, affected the spring and summer home sales, pushing many buyers and sellers into the market earlier in the year,” said Board President Joanne Tibbles. “However, we see from these numbers how stable the Ottawa’s housing market remained, partly due to our diversified employment base that continues to weather unstable economic conditions with relative ease. Sales may have declined from what was, in fact, a record year in 2009, but prices have continued to rise at a healthy rate, demonstrating continuing demand for resale housing in Ottawa,” she added.

The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in December in the Ottawa area was $324,566, an increase of 5.6 per cent over December 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $254,776, an increase of 3.5 per cent over December 2009. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $355,860, an increase of 7.8 per cent over December  2009.

With particular reference to single level condominium apartments, MLS statistics for December 2010 show a total of 89 sales of apartments – exactly the same number as in December 2009. December 2010’s average sale price was $296,046, an increase of 8.6 per cent over the previous December. Of course these figures are averages for the entire city.  If you would like more specific statistical information, just call me.

With the start of a new year, there is every indication that the present stable market will continue and we are looking forward to a strong take-off.

If you require additional information, whether or not you are considering selling, don’t hesitate to call me for an informal chat.