Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,126
residential properties in March through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service®
system, compared with 1,160 in March 2013, a decrease of 2.9 per cent.
“Sales picked up month over month, with 256 more properties switching
hands in March than in February,” says Randy Oickle, President of the Ottawa
Real Estate Board. “That’s a 29.7 per cent increase, which is to be expected of
a spring market.”
March’s sales included 230 in the condominium property
class, and 896 in the residential property class. The condominium property class
includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached,
apartment, stacked etc.), which is registered as a condominium, as well as
properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential
property class includes all other residential properties.
“A total of
2,776 properties were listed in March, indicating that sellers were getting
ready the busy spring market,” explains Oickle. “The average days on market
stood at 49 for the month of March, lower than the average of 61 days in January
and February, indicating that properties are starting to move faster as we enter
the second quarter of 2014.”
The average sale price of residential
properties, including condominiums, sold in March in the Ottawa area was
$359,051, an increase of 0.3 per cent over March 2013. The average sale price
for a condominium-class property was $251,381, a decrease of 2.1 per cent over
March 2013. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $386,690,
an increase of 0.2 per cent over March 2013. The Board cautions that average
sale price information 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 average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume
of all properties sold.
“It’s a great time to buy or sell real estate,”
says Oickle. “Talk to an Ottawa-area REALTOR® today for help with buying and/or
selling a home, and you will have an ally from start to finish, and everything
in between.”