Tight inventory pushes average home prices
slightly higher
HALIFAX, July 14, 2015 /CNW/ - The Royal LePage House
Price Survey and Market Survey Forecast released today showed
moderate increases in prices for all housing types surveyed in
Halifax during the second
quarter.
The average price of a standard condominium jumped by 4.6 per
cent year-over-year to $256,333. The
average price of detached bungalows increased by 2.1 per cent to
$298,167 and standard two-storey
homes rose 1.8 per cent to $368,850.
"Unit sales remained steady and inventories were slightly lower
this quarter than the same time last year, leading to higher prices
for all housing types," said Matt
Honsberger, broker and regional manager, Royal LePage
Atlantic.
Looking ahead, Royal LePage forecasts that prices in the
Halifax market will remain
relatively flat for the full year, rising 0.1% per cent in 2015, as
compared with 2014.
"The real estate market in Halifax is likely to remain balanced for the
rest of the year. We expect to see some small but restrained growth
in average home prices," he added.
Nationally, against the backdrop of mixed economic signals at
home and abroad, Canada's real
estate market remained healthy in the second quarter of 2015, with
solid national average price appreciation across housing segments.
Furthermore, the combination of high sales volumes and vigorous
price appreciation in Canada's
largest cities has put the national residential real estate market
on track for a record year in terms of total sales. With most
Canadian real estate markets across the country advancing modestly,
and some rapidly, Royal LePage advises that a further interest rate
cut by the Bank of Canada could
over-stimulate markets such as greater Toronto and Vancouver.
During the second quarter, the average price of a home in
Canada rose between 3.9 per cent
and 7.5 per cent year-over-year in the second quarter. The detached
bungalow segment had the highest national increase, rising 7.5 per
cent year-over-year to $438,938,
while standard two-storey homes appreciated 6.8 per cent to
$471,002. During the same period, the
average price of a condominium rose 3.9 per cent to $268,583. Looking ahead, Royal LePage forecasts
that the average price of a home in Canada will increase 6.1 per cent for the full
year when compared to 2014.
"The robust national average home price increases that we have
seen in the second quarter are heavily influenced by activity
levels in Toronto and Vancouver," said Phil
Soper, president and chief executive officer, Royal
LePage. "Looking to Canada
as a whole, 2015 is shaping up to be a record year for housing,
despite the cloud of economic uncertainty caused by low oil prices
and twitchy global economies."
About the Royal LePage House Price Survey
The Royal LePage House Price Survey is the largest, most
comprehensive study of its kind in Canada, with information on seven types of
housing in over 250 neighbourhoods from coast to coast. This
release references an abbreviated version of the survey which
highlights house price trends for the three most common types of
housing in Canada in 90
communities across the country. A complete database of past and
present surveys is available on the Royal LePage website at
www.royallepage.ca. Current figures will be updated following the
complete tabulation of the data for the second quarter of 2015. A
printable version of the second quarter 2015 survey will be
available online on August 14, 2015.
Housing values in the Royal LePage House Price Survey are Royal
LePage opinions of fair market value in each location, based on
local data and market knowledge provided by Royal LePage
residential real estate experts.
About Royal LePage
Serving Canadians since 1913, Royal LePage is the country's
leading provider of services to real estate brokerages, with a
network of over 16,000 real estate professionals in more than 600
locations nationwide. Royal LePage is the only Canadian real estate
company to have its own charitable foundation, the Royal LePage
Shelter Foundation, dedicated to supporting women's and children's
shelters and educational programs aimed at ending domestic
violence. Royal LePage is a Brookfield Real Estate Services Inc.
company, a TSX-listed corporation trading under the symbol
TSX:BRE.
For more information visit: www.royallepage.ca.
SOURCE Royal LePage Real Estate Services