Collingwood Real Estate Market Update Spring 2013

The Georgian Triangle property market continues to fire on all cylinders racking up yet another impressive performance for the month of April and standing out as one of the beacons of strength and stability in the Ontario real estate market. Indeed April’s sales figures released by the Georgian Triangle Association of REALTORS® (“GTAR”) logged a whopping 213 properties sold, higher than any number recorded for the month of April according to GTAR’s archives over the last decade.  To surpass the level of sales set last year in strong and stable market conditions is truly a notable accomplishment. Affordability, quality of life, diversity of property choices and options, and comparative value all seem to be factors contributing to the ongoing strength and legs of the Georgian Triangle real estate market.

In April, 213 properties changed hands, 4% more than last year in the same month which had 205 sales, and almost 29% more than sold last month and in April 2011, when 167 properties sold in each case. Year to date figures are 2% ahead of last year with a total so far for 2013 of 620 properties sold compared to 608 last year at this time. This number also exceeds all year to date sales figures for this time going all the way back to 2004 when 630 properties were recorded as sold by April’s month end. These are truly impressive figures underlying the resilience of the Georgian Triangle market and the obvious attractiveness of this area to today’s buyers.

Interestingly, however, total dollar volume of sales is down year over year by 4%, highlighting the fact that while the market may be robust, sales appear to be concentrated more at the mid and lower price ranges, reflecting the activity in neighbouring rural and urban trading areas where high end properties are not moving as quickly, and when they do sell, it is often only after one or more price reductions. Affordability and real value appears to be top of mind for most buyers who are not prepared to pay any price for their next home or investment and rather in many cases settle on a price only after serious and tough negotiations with the seller. Consistent with this, sales in the one million dollar and up range for the month of April lag behind last year at this time while unit sales in most price categories between $250,000 and $800,000 exceed those from the year previous.

Listings are down 6% from last year with only 706 new properties coming onto the market in April compared to 755 in April 2012. Year to date figures are not much different coming in at 2268, 5% behind last year’s tally of 2383. All this contributes to a tighter market, reflected in the lower inventory of active listings which is 4% lower than last year with 2226 properties recorded as active listings in the MLS® system at the time GTAR’s report was created compared to 2320 last April.

Not surprisingly, strong demand with tighter supply means higher prices, though admittedly only modestly so. Year to date the average residential sale price is up 4.3% coming in at $331,267 compared to $317,534 last year at this time. The average sale price for single family residential properties this April was $318,706, 1% more than last April when it was calculated at $315,336. Measured over a longer twelve month period, the numbers are relatively consistent, stable and sustainable marking only a 1.3% increase coming in at $325,023 compared to $320,755 measured over the same length of time the year previous.

All things considered, GTAR’s statistics for the month of April reflect a remarkably positive performance for the Georgian Triangle real estate market, if somewhat qualified by a softer higher end. That said, mixed messages on the economic front both domestically and south of the border, to say nothing of the ongoing instability in global financial and labour markets means that some degree of uncertainty will continue to percolate through to buyers’ intentions and their willingness to part with their money. As stated in earlier reports, sellers will have to keep this in mind in tempering their expectations and ensuring that their list price reflects value.

Prepared by: Richard Stewart, VP and Legal Counsel Chestnut Park Real Estate Limited, Brokerage

Feature image via The Picot Team, Chestnut Park Real Estate Collingwood