OTTAWA, August 3, 2023 – Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB) sold 1,263 residential properties in July through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System, compared with 1,102 in July 2022, an increase of 15%. July’s sales included 979 in the freehold-property class, up 18% from a year ago, and 284 in the condominium-property category, a 6% increase from July 2022. The five-year average for total unit sales in July is 1,621.
“Both transactions and average prices are up from last July indicating consumers remain confident in the market notwithstanding the two recent quarter-percent interest rate hikes by the Bank of Canada. We’re only a month into the third quarter, but based on July’s positive indicators, we are likely to see solid year-over-year results in the second half,” says Ottawa Real Estate Board President Ken Dekker.
By the Numbers – Average Prices*:
- The average sale price for a freehold-class property in July was $754,188, an increase of 5% from 2022, and a 1% increase over June 2023 prices.
- The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $435,094 an increase of 2% from a year ago, although 3% lower than June 2023 prices.
- With year-to-date average sale prices at $735,103 for freeholds and $433,447 for condos, these values represent a 9% decrease over 2022 for freehold-class properties and a 6% decrease for condominium-class properties.
By the Numbers – Inventory & New Listings:
- July’s new listings (2,234) were 6% lower than July 2022 (2,364) and down 19% from June 2023 (2,755). The 5-year average for new listings in July is 2,336.
- Months of Inventory for the freehold-class properties has decreased to 2.7 months from 2.9 months in July 2022 but increased from 2.1 months in June 2023.
- Months of Inventory for condominium-class properties has decreased to 2.3 months from 2.5 months in July 2022, but is up from 1.4 months in June 2023.
- Days on market (DOM) for freeholds have increased to 26 days from 20 days in July 2022 and 23 days from June 2023.
- Days on market (DOM) for condos have increased to 28 days from 20 days in July 2023 and 27 days in June 2023.
REALTORS® also help with finding rentals and vetting potential tenants. Since the beginning of the year, OREB Members have assisted clients with renting 3,921 properties compared to 3,528 last year at this time, an increase of 11%.
* OREB cautions that the average sale price can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The calculation of the average sale price is based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold. Price will vary from neighbourhood to neighbourhood.
