Home sales in Ottawa drop for 11th straight month

Home sales in Ottawa declined for a 11th straight month according to recent data from the Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB). 

OREB said in a release that home sales in Ottawa dropped 35 per cent in January of 2023. 

OREB members sold 606 residential properties in January of this year through the board’s Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System, compared with 933 in January 2022. 

“January’s marked slow down in unit sales over 2022 indicates potential home buyers are taking their time,” said OREB president Ken Dekker. “While last month saw the culmination of the succession of interest rate hikes announced by the Bank of Canada, affordability remains a factor. They may be waiting for a shift in listing prices. They’re being cautious in uncertain conditions.”

January’s sales included 460 in the freehold-property class, down 30 per cent from a year ago, and 146 in the condominium-property category, a decrease of 47 per cent from January 2022. The five-year average for total unit sales in January is 819.

By the numbers – average prices

• The average sale price for a condominium-class property in January was $412,244, a decrease of eight per cent from 2022.
• The average sale price for a freehold-class property was $676,272, decreasing 12 per cent from a year ago.

“Despite the decrease in average prices, the market should not be considered on a downward slide,” said Dekker. “A hyper COVID-19 seller’s market is now levelling out to our current balanced market state. On a positive note, in comparison to December’s figures, January’s average price of freehold properties increased by three per cent. The average price of condos did fall by five per cent compared to December but condo pricing tends to fluctuate more due to the small data set.”

By the numbers – inventory and new listings:

• Months of Inventory for the freehold-class properties has increased to 3.8 months from 0.9 months in January 2022.
• Months of Inventory for condominium-class properties has increased to 3.8 months from 0.8 months in January 2022.
• January’s new listings (1,324) were 16 per cent higher than 2022 (1,142) and up 89 per cent from December 2022 (699). The five-year average for new listings in January is 1,233.