Following months of increases, home sales turned rather stagnant in December, as just 54 units changed hands in the month.
That’s down marginally compared to December 2023, to the tune of two sales.
Looking back, home sales, according to the Chatham-Kent Association of Realtors (CKAR), were 34.6 per cent below the five-year average and 30 per cent below the 10-year average for the month of December.
Looking at 2024 overall, home sales totaled 1,275 units over the course of the year, an increase of 8.6 per cent from 2023.
Barbara McCaughrin, president of CKAR, said 2024 was a solid recovery period.
“The year 2024 marked a year of strong and sustained recovery in home sales supported by even stronger growth in listings coming onto the market from motivated sellers,” she said in a media release.
Despite the sluggish December in terms of sales, McCaughrin points to the number of properties on the market having grown substantially as a good sign.
“Inventories are sitting at higher levels now than they were at the end of 2023, providing ample opportunities for buyers who are making their return into the market as interest rates continue to move lower and new mortgage rule changes introduced in December provide more support to demand,” she said.
The number of new listings was up by 14.9 per cent from December 2023. There were 108 new residential listings in December 2024.
New listings were 12.3 per cent above the five-year average and 27.7 per cent above the 10-year average for the month of December.
Active residential listings numbered 369 units on the market at the end of December, an increase of 20.6 per cent from the end of December 2023. Active listings haven’t been this high in the month of December in more than five years.
As for the price of homes, the average price of houses sold in December 2024 was $441,428, up 4.3 per cent from December 2023.
Looking at 2024 overall compared to 2023, the annual average price was $428,501, edging up 0.1 per cent from all of 2023.
“Price gains are currently very modest and aren’t expected to show much in the way of gains in the short term until the market has had a chance to work through its above-average supply levels,” McCaughrin said.