Edmonton Real Estate Blog

A Sellers Market in Edmonton in June

No sooner had I pushed the publish button on my "weekly update" this afternoon did I receive notification from the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton that the monthly numbers were ready! I don't think they're trying to ruin my vacation but they are certainly giving me lots to do! Just kidding.... They obviously worked hard to correct the problem and release the numbers as quickly as possible.

Anyway, here is what June 2009 actually looked like:

That is a lot of sales! The highest number of residential sales for June ever (that I am aware of) and the third highest number of sales for any month (that I am aware of). What is causing this high number of sales? First it's seasonality - there are always more sales in the spring than in the rest of the year. Second, record low mortgage rates and lower prices. Third, there have been a lot of people sitting on the fence, waiting to buy for a couple of years now and a lot of them have decided now is the right time for them since things are more affordable.

Of course, with an influx of buyers comes more competition (we've seen this on many of our listings that have received multiple offers in the past two months) and increasing prices:

And more sales means dropping inventory. But that is not the end of the story... 

We typically would see the number of new listings drop in June, but they have stayed flat (3180 new listings in May, 3179 in June). Some home owners are starting to jump in with the buyers as well... what I mean is that I'm starting to get a lot of questions from owners who were thinking of selling a couple of years ago but decided to wait when the market turned. Many of these people rented out their properties, or some decided not to move up or down or out of Edmonton. My guess is many of these people are going to try selling again this summer because they feel the market is improving and it's time to cash out. I wouldn't be surprised to see a higher than normal number of new listings in July and perhaps even more than we saw this month.

What could this mean for the market? Well, for buyers that have reserved a rate with their lender it could mean more selection and less competition as the summer progresses, which would be an ideal time for many to buy. For sellers it could mean that they should put away their rose coloured glasses until next year (or maybe the year after that). Whatever it means, the market is certainly unpredictable and we're all going to have to wait and see what happens.

June definitely turned out to be the best month so far for sellers this year, with an 80% sales to new listings ratio is was most definitely a seller's market:

 

 The absorption rate also shows sellers had the upper hand, and for the first month this year I'd say the absorption rate was normal:

 

Hope everyone has a great weekend and I do look forward to the discussion that is generated by these numbers.

Edmonton Real Estate Market Weekly Update

Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week's numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days:

New listings: 453 (448, 483, 536)
# Sales: 329 (421, 441, 359)
Ratio: 73% (94%, 91%, 68%)
# Price changes: 189 (203, 233, 246)
# Expired Listings: 308 (69, 102, 112)
# Withdrawn/terminated/etc. listings: 32 (34, 46, 102)
Net loss/gain in listings this week: -216 (-76, -60, 36)
Active listings for single family homes: 2150 (2255, 2264, 2320)
Active listings for condos: 1797 (1908, 1934, 1969)

Since we're on holidays this week, the decrease in the number of sales in understandable...lol... Seriously though, this week is typically a slower week since many Albertans head off their on summer vacays.

 

Still waiting to hear on the final numbers for July. have a great weekend!

Record Breaking Home Sales in Edmonton

Happy Canada Day! I hope everyone is enjoying the day as much as we are. I was planning on doing a full report on the Edmonton residential MLS® sales in June, however, it appears as though the REALTORS® Association computer hit some sort of a glitch, and did not run the daily stats last night. From what I can see, the numbers reported today are exactly the same as yesterday (2425 sales, average residential sale price $327, 935, single family $370,696, condos $247,173). With it being a holiday I can't call anyone and find out what is going on.

That being said, I can give some information on what is happening in Edmonton specifically (as opposed to the whole MLS® region).

Single family home sales in Edmonton have been increasing essentially at the same high rate all year:

 

 

 

 

 

I may have an update for you tomorrow, depending on what happens with the daily stats, otherwise I won't have the final numbers until July 6 when the official numbers are released.        

Edmonton Real Estate Sales Watch

As of yesterday there have been 2425 residential sales reported by REALTORS® in the greater Edmonton area. That's a new record June for sales! With 1 day left in the month, how high will the new record be? Full report tomorrow!

Edmonton Real Estate Sales Watch

As of yesterday there have been 2304 residential sales reported by REALTORS® in the greater Edmonton area. That's a record June for sales beating the previous record (June 2007) of 2203. With 2 days left in the month, how high will the new record be?

Edmonton Real Estate Market Weekly Update

Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week's numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days:

New listings: 448 (483, 536, 516)
# Sales: 421 (441, 359, 377)
Ratio: 94% (91%, 68%, 73%)
# Price changes: 203 (233, 246, 207)
# Expired Listings: 69 (102, 112, 204)
# Withdrawn/terminated/etc. listings: 34 (46, 102, 29, 21)
Net loss/gain in listings this week: -76 (-60, 36, -86)
Active listings for single family homes: 2255 (2264, 2320, 2326)
Active listings for condos: 1908 (1934, 1969, 1935)

Wow the market is hot out there right now! Multiple offers all over the place... I've been expecting a slow down for a few weeks now and with the sales to new listings ratio at 94% it is hard to say things are slowing down.  I still do expect that it will be Alberta's highways that are busy next week with vacationers, not the real estate market (but I have been wrong before!):

 

So far this month there have been 2194 residential sales reported by the REALTORS®  Association of Edmonton. That is already more sales than we've seen in a full month of June in at least 10 years except for 2007 when there were 2203 sales which means this should be a record June for sales.

 

The average residential sale price currently sits at $327k, single family homes $370k (both down slightly for the past two weeks) and condos at $246k (up slightly for the past two weeks).

What can we say? There has definitely been a mood shift - from a buyers market to sellers market, from no confidence to lots of confidence. We talked a lot about people sitting on the fence last year, it must have been a really big fence. 

While the market has changed, so has our little company. Sarah MacDonald has joined our company as our Client Services Manager, and Justin Tazi has come on board as our newest REALTOR®. Justin has been a REALTOR for over 5 years and we look forward to bringing additional members to our team. Welcome aboard Justin and Sarah! We know these changes will allow us to better serve the needs of our clients and we plan to continue to grow in the months and years ahead. If you're interested in starting a career in real estate, or growing your career with an innovative, successful brokerage contact us today.

Happy weekend!

The Real Property Report: What is it and why do I need one?

Guest author Stan Galbraith of Galbraith Law is back! Earlier this year, Stan did a great series of articles for the Edmonton Real Estate Blog on foreclosures. He is back with a series on Real Property Reports and Title Insurance. This is the first of three articles in the series:

What is a Real Property Report (RPR)?  And what purpose does it serve in a residential real estate transaction?

An RPR provides a graphic representation of all the improvements and features of the property.  Years ago, it was called a Building Location Certificate and all it showed was the foundation lines of the buildings on the property and the lot lines.  Now, it is called a Real Property Report and provides a much more comprehensive report on the real estate or real property.

An RPR provides information such as the location of utility right-of-ways and easements.  It also shows boundary fences, the overhangs of eaves and additional improvements such as swimming pools and hot tubs.  In other words, it is a complete report on the real property or real estate.

Typically, in most residential real estate transactions in Alberta, this report is submitted to the local municipality for a compliance stamp or certificate.  This is a confirmation from the municipality that the buildings and improvements on the property comply with local zoning and setback regulations.  They will also verify whether permits are in place for all the structures.

The standard Real Estate Purchase Contract (REPC) contains warranties.

The seller warrants the buildings and other improvements do not encroach on any neighboring land.  They also warrant the location of all buildings and improvements complies with all relevant laws.  The RPR provides the proof that these warranties are true and correct.  As such, an RPR provides valuable information to a potential buyer. 

Where the deficiencies are noted in the report, the buyer can insist the seller take action at the time of the purchase to remedy these deficiencies.  For example, when the RPR discloses encroachment onto either municipal or neighboring land, the buyer can look to the seller to obtain an Encroachment Agreement at the time of closing.

Without the report, the warranties lose much of their impact.  Discovering a deficiency many years later makes it very difficult to pursue the seller.  For example, limitation periods may have expired or the seller may simply be difficult to contact and pursue.

Make note that the warranty in the standard REPC only extends to encroachment onto neighboring lands.  There is no warranty offered regarding encroachments onto the land that is bought and sold.  In other words, if the neighbor’s deck extends into the backyard of the purchased property, there is no obligation on the seller to do anything about this.  The buyer has the option, once they obtain Title, of negotiating with the neighbor to either remove the encroaching deck, or leave it as it is and put an agreement in place to cover the issue.

Most lawyers are of the view that an RPR provides the best solution on every real estate deal.  They say that is the only way to have the certainty required by the buyer.  Certainly, in most cases, it does provide certainty.  However, in my view, it's far from the ideal solution on every deal.

In the next article we will look at Title Insurance and what it has to offer.

About the author: Stan Galbraith is a lawyer with over 25 years of experience.  He was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 1983 and has operated his own law office since 1988. Stan has a wealth of experience ranging from litigation and appeal work, to teaching and writing. He has now left the world of litigation behind and works with commercial and residential Realtors and their clients on closing their transactions. He also practices extensively in the areas of small business and wills and estate planning and administration. You can find his website at www.galbraith.ab.ca.

What Not to Do Before Taking Possession of Your New Home

Gord McCallum at First Foundation Mortgages sent us this list of What NOT to do before taking possession of your new home:

Don't quit your current job.

Don't do anything that will reduce your income (ie switch from full time to part time).

Don't apply for new loans or credit (including credit cards)

Don't close accounts with zero balance

Don't co-sign a loan or mortgage for someone else

Don't stop paying your bills

Don't spend the money you set aside for your down payment

Don't make large deposits into your accounts without documents supporting why the amount is being deposited.

Don't make any changes to your purchase contract without letting your lawyer and lender know.

Edmonton Real Estate Market Weekly Update

Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week's numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days:

New listings: 483 (536, 516, 469)
# Sales: 441 (359, 377, 437)
Ratio: 91% (68%, 73%, 93%)
# Price changes: 233 (246, 207, 239)
# Expired Listings: 102 (112, 204, 85)
# Withdrawn/terminated/etc. listings: 46 (29, 21, 27)
Net loss/gain in listings this week: -60 (36, -86, -80)
Active listings for single family homes: 2264 (2320, 2326, 2400)
Active listings for condos: 1934 (1969, 1935, 2008)

Another week of high sales, perhaps there will be more sales this month than I predicted last week. So far this month there have been 1577 residential MLS® sales in the greater Edmonton area - if the pace continues we will see over 2600 sales this month but I do think the pace will slow down as the kids get out of school.

The average MLS® residential sale price is $328k, single family homes at $371k (both down slightly from last week), and condos at $249k (up from last week).

Have a great weekend!

Wide Angle HD Video Home Tours

We try not to talk too much about our specific services or listings on the blog, but I'm so excited about this I just had to share it. Canon recently released a new DSLR camera that shoots HD video. Now, I'll be the first to admit shooting in HD isn't all that new or exciting, we've been using our little flip video camera to shoot HD video for about a year. The big difference is I can now shoot HD Video WITH my super wide angle lens, so when you watch the video you get the whole picture instead of the typical tunnel vision you get from a regular camcorder. Check out my first two attempts:

4 Kirklees Road, Nottingham, Sherwood Park, Alberta ($579,800):

1012 Summerwood Estates Road, Summerwood, Sherwood Park ($749,800):

Edmonton Brings up the National Average

All the Canadian newspapers are aflutter because the Canadian Real Estate Association released their monthly report today, with positive news. I think people tend to get over excited about these releases whether positive or negative, but, here is the gist of it.

Resales of existing Canadian homes showed continuing improvements in in May, with both the number of transactions and the national average price on the rise. The national average sale price in May hit the highest monthly level on record, at $319,757, which was up four-tenths of a percentage point from the previous record in May 2008.

The real-estate association said the dollar value of sales through its members reached $11.4 billion in May, up 10 per cent from the previous month and more than 50 per cent above the low of $7.5 billion in January.

The association said the the rebound in activity was led in some of the most expensive local markets in Canada and that had the effect up pushing the national average price upward.

Seasonally adjusted sales were up on a monthly basis in about 70% of local markets. Monthly activity gains in Toronto (9%), Calgary (25%), Montreal (10%), Vancouver (8%), and Edmonton (12%) contributed most to the overall increase in monthly activity.

"Inventory levels are still high in many markets, but fewer new listings and rising sales activity suggests that the selection of homes available for sale may shrink as the year progresses. The supply of homes up for sale needs to be drawn down further before average price increases become more widespread among local markets," said CREA economist Gregory Klump.

Edmonton Real Estate Market Weekly Update

Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week's numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days:

New listings: 536 (516, 469, 406)
# Sales: 359 (377, 437, 316)
Ratio: 68% (73%, 93%, 78%)
# Price changes: 246 (207, 239, 216)
# Expired Listings: 112 (204, 85, 129)
# Withdrawn/terminated/etc. listings: 29 (21, 27, 19)
Net loss/gain in listings this week: 36 (-86, -80, -58)
Active listings for single family homes: 2320 (2326, 2400, 2456)
Active listings for condos: 1969 (1935, 2008, 2007)

So the big question on my mind is, has the market peaked? I'm going to go out on a slightly shaky limb and say yes, May was the peak for this year. We've seen an increasing number of new listings for the past 3 weeks, and decreasing sales for 2 weeks. We also saw the 5-year fixed mortgage rates go up this week.

 

All that being said, if you're looking to buy it's starting to be a better time for you, especially if you followed our advice and got a rate hold from your lender (now would be a good time to try and extend your rate hold so you can shop in July when it should be even slower). In May it was tough to find anything to show in a lot of price ranges, since all the good homes were selling very quickly. I expect over the next few weeks we'll start to see things lasting on the market a little longer.

Sales seem to be following a very typical pattern this year, and I don't see any reason it won't continue. Once the kiddies are out of school and Albertans head off on their summer vacations things tend to slow down.

So far this month the REALTORS® Association has reported 1000 residential sales in the greater Edmonton area - if that pace continues (I don't think it will) there could be 2700 sales this month (about 50% more than last year). My best guess at this point is we'll see around 2200 sales in June. The average sale price sits at $329k, single family homes at $373k and condos at $246k (all up from the end of May).

Have a great weekend, it's going to be a hot one!

Edmonton Vacancy Rate on the Rise

Canada Mortgage and Housing released its Spring Rental Market Report today. Highlights:

• The average apartment vacancy rate in Alberta's urban centres increased from 2.9 per cent in April 2008 to 4.6 per cent in April 2009. All centres except Grande Prairie reported a higher vacancy rate in 2009.
• The 2009 vacancy rates ranged from a low of 1.2 per cent in Cold Lake to a high of 8.5 per cent in Grande Prairie.
• Calgary and Edmonton, the two largest urban centres, reported vacancy rates of 4.3 and 4.7 per cent, respectively.
• The provincial average rent for all unit types was $962 per month in April. At $2,088, Wood Buffalo had the highest average monthly rent amongst all urban centres in Alberta, while Medicine Hat had the lowest average rent at $654 monthly.

 

Hammered for Habitat for Humanity

We got Hammered yesterday and we loved it! Well really we just hammered a lot... Not everyone deserves to own a home, but just because you can’t afford a home doesn’t mean you don't deserve a helping hand.  Habitat for Humanity helps make home ownership a reality for some really deserving people. 

Right now Habitat for humanity is doing a blitz build in St. Albert. Construction started two weeks ago on a duplex that will be home to two deserving families. On the weekend they had over 150 people out to help do framing.  Yesterday our little office participated.  If there is one place one person can make a difference its certainly here.

Slated for completion on June 20th, the crew and volunteers of the St. Albert blitz build certainly have their work cut out for them.  One of the things that makes Edmonton the great city it is has to be its high level of volunteerism.

Edmonton Real Estate Market Weekly Update

Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week's numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days:

New listings: 516 (469, 406, 501)
# Sales: 377 (437, 316, 344)
Ratio: 73% (93%, 78%, 69%)
# Price changes: 207 (239, 216, 239)
# Expired Listings: 204 (85, 129, 102)
# Withdrawn/terminated/etc. listings: 21 (27, 19, 37)
Net loss/gain in listings this week: -86 (-80, -58, 18)
Active listings for single family homes: 2326 (2400, 2456, 2488)
Active listings for condos: 1935 (2008, 2007, 2015)

It's up, it's down, people are in, they’re out.  The market is behaving just like that guy does in Katie Perry’s song and it is not a local phenomenon either. In last few days we have received referrals from other agents in Ottawa and Hamilton and they are reporting very strong sales activity there as well.  According to them May was perhaps the best month for sales ever for Hamilton and Ottawa.  The week before last Sara and I were in Vancouver for meetings and were you could sense the change in the room. 

Some people are convinced the market has turned the corner, I’m a little less convinced of that but I am started to see signs that things are normalizing (lower inventory and stronger sales).  There has clearly been a shift in the psychology of the market:

• Sellers are digging in, in terms of negotiating.
• There are fewer price reductions
• The Time properties are  on the MLS system has dropped

Its pretty obvious though that the current trend is national in nature and not just local to Edmonton.