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Waterloo region home sales down 25 per cent from last year

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The number of homes sold in Waterloo region last month is down 25 per cent from September of last year, the Waterloo Region Association of Realtors reports.

Released on Wednesday, the latest data means those looking for a home have fewer options to choose from.

“We’re looking to get a little bit more into a suburban neighbourhood that’s family-friendly,” said Shauna Ramsaroop, an interested homebuyer in Waterloo region.

Ramsaroop and her partner have owned a home in Kitchener for two years.

Currently in a two-bedroom house, the couple is in the market for a larger home to fit a growing family.

“We’re gonna be wanting that third bedroom within the next year for sure,” said Ramsaroop.

The couple put their home on the market earlier this year.

When the property didn’t attract enough offers, they decided to drop the asking price.

“We had one very insulting offer from a developer and we kind of just left it at that,” she said.

Adding: “When we’re looking to buy, there’s no way to really gauge what our budget is because we don’t necessarily know how much we’re going to be selling our house for.”

This comes weeks after the bank of Canada increased its overnight lending rate to 3.25 per cent, meaning mortgages cost more.

“We’re sitting here saying that we’re in a buyer's market, but is that really the reality of it? If we were to sell right now, the interest that we’re paying on our mortgage, the new one would essentially be double,” said Ramsaroop.

Given the state of the market, Ramsaroop says she’s thinking of purchasing a smaller interim home for the time being until they can move into their forever home.

The average sale price in Waterloo region across all property types was $752,421 last month. That’s down $262,090 from February’s all-time peak, when the average sale price for all residential properties in the region cracked $1 million, but up $955 from August. The modest bump – albeit only 0.1 per cent – marks the first month-over-month increase since prices began to tumble in March.

Bell said although home sales were down in September, the market appears to be becoming more balanced.

Shawn Ramautor, a sales representative for Royal LePage Wolle Realty said in his opinion rates are not going to stay the way they currently are.

“Your interest rates, whether you go on a 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, eventually they will stabilize and normalize. I definitely think there is a great opportunity for the right buyer to get in,” said Ramautor.

He said the balancing of the market comes after months of unrealistic growth, and there are deals to be made for long-term investors.

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