Monthly home sales continue to hover near decade lows

Snow blocks off a 'For Sale' sign on Young Street in Kitchener on Friday, Jan. 9, 2015. (Abigail Bimman / CTV Kitchener)

The number of homes sold in January across Waterloo Region was “exceptionally low” with the region seeing a 41.9 per cent decrease in sales compared to January 2022.

This comes from the latest monthly report from Waterloo Region Association of Realtors (WRAR), which also says January was another month near decade low home sales.

“Waterloo Region’s home sales in January were at their second lowest of any single month in well over a decade,” said Megan Bell, president of WRAR in a news release Friday. “Home sales tend to be sluggish in January, and while we expected activity to ease to reflect economic challenges, this was a larger drop than originally anticipated.”

According to WRAR, the number of homes sold in December 2022 was lower than any single month in well over a decade when 280 homes were sold.

January saw 297 homes sold, with 176 of those being detached, 61 townhomes, 43 condominiums and 17 semi-detached homes.

“In January, the average sale price for all residential properties in Waterloo Region was $764,063. This represents a 20.1 per cent decrease compared to January 2022 and a 5.9 per cent increase compared to December 2022,” the release said.

This figure is slightly higher than in December, when the average sale price across all property types, including condos, townhouses, detached and semi-detached homes was $720,596.

Detached homes continued to be the most expensive, with the average price of a detached home now $888,487. This represents a 21.5 per cent decrease from January 2022 and an increase of 7.6 per cent compared to December 2022.

Apartment-style condominiums continue to be the most affordable option for homeowners, with an average price of $495,753. This represents a decrease of 9.3 per cent from January 2022 and an increase of 6.1 per cent compared to December 2022.

“On a monthly basis, we saw the average sale price increase across all property types in January,” said Bell. “I’m also noticing more multiple offers happening, especially on detached homes that are priced under eight hundred thousand dollars.”

The average number of days to sell in January was 25, compared to 9 days in January 2022, according to WRAR.

The total number of homes available for sale in active status at the end of January was 651, an increase of 167.9 per cent compared to January of last year and 34.7 per cent below the previous ten-year average of 998 listings for January.

“The demographic of buyers is also shifting as we observe fewer buyers coming from the GTA into the region. While there are still some, it is nowhere like it was last January," Bell said.