Edmonton Real Estate Blog

Just got exciting news. I ranked #4 for office production in the month of January. Thinking of buying or selling a home in Edmonton call me today to ensure you get representation from a professional. Call me today 780-995-6520

Congratulations to my client Robyn for getting an accepted offer on his home in only 3 days. It is now sold, but we still have other buyers looking for homes. If you have been thinking of selling call me. Serge 780-995-6520

I just finished reading the press release from the Realtors Assc. Of Edmonton and I was very surprised at their statistics. They are indicating that it is still a rather slow market in Edmonton which was opposite to what I had been experiencing. The month of January was one of my busiest January’s that I can remember since starting real estate in 1985.

But let us look at what an analysis of the market really tells us. As of today February 03, 2012 there are 2003 single family homes listed in Edmonton proper. I found that to be a relatively low number.

However when I take a look at the number of sales in the previous 30 days there were only
440 homes sold. That is a number much lower than I had anticipated based on the number of homes that I personally have sold.

This would give us a listing to sales ration of 4.55:1. With a ratio that high it would indicate that there is still downward pressure on valuations and still a buyer’s market which is supported by the press release from the Realtor’s Assc. Of Edmonton.

However I think this will be short live and we will shortly see the pendulum swing the
other way back into a seller’s market soon. So if you are thinking of buying better buy soon before valuations start to rise again.

Edmonton, January 4, 2012: The REALTORS® Association of Edmonton reported that the all-residential average price for real estate sales through the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in December was
up 1.7% ($316,415) from a year ago. The average price of a single family detached home was also up 2.0% to $364,803 from December 2010. Relative to last December housing prices were up overall as well. As typical for December whensales usually fall off, month over month sales were down 27% and prices dipped 1.5% as compared to the November figures.

“With economic uncertainty impacting Europe and depressed housing markets in parts of the United States, it is a relief to report on the stability and health of the local real estate market,” said REALTORS® Association of Edmonton President (2011) Chris Mooney. “With prices and sales varying within a small
range there is a solid base going forward into the 2012 market.”

In November the average price of a single family detached home was $364,924and dipped just 0.3% in December. A year ago the average price was $357,636. That stability was reflected in condo pricing as well. In November the average price of a condo was $228,689 and the December price of $227,679 was down just 0.4%. A year ago the average condo price was $225,641. Duplex and rowhouse properties sold on average for $282,620, a 9.7% drop from a year ago.

The average residential price (including all SFD, condo, duplex, townhouse properties sold in the Greater Edmonton Area) was $316,415: down from November by 1.5%. There were 1,085 properties listed and 827 sold in December. There were 1,088 listings and 829 sales in December 2010. With slower sales the
Days-on-market was 65 and the sales-to-listing ratio was a high for the year of 76.2%.

Looking back over the year, Mooney was content. “Last January, I forecast a 3% increase in single family prices and no movement in condo prices when comparing December to December. We ended up with a change of about half that overall and condo prices up. Homeowners generally saw an equity increase in the value of their homes in 2011.”

The all-residential average price for the entire year was $325,457 as compared to $329,019 in 2010. There were 10,962 SFD sales (up 5.5%) in 2011 and 4,638 (down 0.4%) condo sales. Total residential sales were 16,893 units (up 3.8%) on listings of 30,906 units (down 2.0%).

Total MLS® sales (including residential, rural, recreational and commercial properties) were valued at $6.29 billion and represented 39,350 listings and 18,986 sales transactions. “REALTORS® were involved in almost 60,000 real estate transactions in 2011 and advised on thousands more that never
materialized. There were tens of thousands of business people, families and individuals who met with one of our 3,200 REALTOR® members this year, and I am proud of their service to the community and the local economy,” said Mooney.

REALTORS® also provided funding of $300,000 to 44 community groups this year through the REALTORS® Community Foundation and supported arts, heritage and community events through marketing and individual contributions. The REALTORS® Association of Edmonton printed over 2.5 million copies of the Real Estate Weekly in 51 issues and 1,061 members participated in professional development courses including 225 new members and 20 new broker/managers.

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I would first like to wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous
New Year! As it can be expected the market of the last 30 days has been slow
because of Christmas and New Years take our focus from real estate and towards
the holiday festivities.

Currently there are 1,790 single family dwellings listed on
the market in Edmonton proper. That lower inventory level that we have seen in
the last few months as people let their listings expire and come off the market
for the holiday season.

In the past 30 days there were 367 single family dwellings
sold. This reflects the season slow down that we would expect.

This gives us a listings to sales ration of 4.87:1 which
normally would indicate that there would be downward pressure on valuation.
However the seasonal slowdown is giving us a ratio that might not really be
indicative of the real market situation. I think that over the next 2 – 4 weeks
we will see this ratio change significantly as the buyers come back to the
market. I also expect that when they do we will probably see increasing
pressure for valuations to rise.

According RBC Economic Report thing look bright for Alberta for the next couple of years.

Here is an a portion of that report as it pertains to Alberta.

On a fast track

Amid the heightenedeconomic uncertainty spreading globally in the past severalmonths, Alberta’s
steady progress toward full recovery from the recession is refreshing. Overcoming obstacles of its own—chief among them the wildfires that caused significant economic disruptions in May—the provincial economy is now displaying the stuff that made it a growth powerhouse a little more than half a decade ago. Impressed by the performance to date, we upgraded our call for Alberta’s real GDP growth
to 4.0% this year, which is a pace that we believe will be largelysustained in both 2012 and 2013, at 3.9% and 3.8%, respectively. Were it not for the even stronger performance by Saskatchewan, Alberta would recapture the crown of Canada’s fastest growing provincial economy.

Job market booming

With the oil industry buzzing like it was in 2006 and serving as a catalyst for activity in other sectors, Alberta’s job market is booming. In the first 11 monthsof this year, there have been 98,000 net new jobs created in the province, representing the best tally since 2006. The gain could well cross the 100,000 mark when all is said and done in 2011, which would set a new record for Alberta. What is most
impressive about this supercharged job market is that gains are broadly based across industries. The energy sector is directly responsible for only a small portion of these gains. Small to moderate advances are being registered in the vast majority of industries. Moreover, the boom entirely emanates from the private sector, which is the source of an astounding 116,000 new jobs this year. Such strength easily made up for declines in the public sector and among the self-employed.

Albertaconsumers spending big

With job prospects improving so quickly and confidence rebuilding, Alberta consumers have been big spenders in 2011. Retail sales in the province have increased at one of the faster rate in the country, with big ticket items such as motor vehiclesenjoying further resurgence from their recessionary lows. We expect that favourable labour market conditions—we project employment to rise by a nation-leading
3.1% next year—will continue to support such positive consumer spending trend in 2012.

Non-conventional crude production setting new records

Generally, the outlook for the Alberta economy remains very bright (notwithstanding the higher risks that face virtually all global economies). Oil production in the province has now fully recovered from the disruptions caused by the wildfires in May and is now on a record pace. We expect that, with more oilsands capacity continuing to be added, non-conventional crude output will set new highs in the
period ahead. Pipeline capacity issues—the topic of much debate in the United States in the past several months that ultimately resulted in delaying the approval decision on the Keystone XL project—might create some transportation bottlenecks to U.S. refineries by 2013, which could restraingrowth in the
province’s exports that year.

Alberta’s oilsands: a boon for years to come

Meanwhile, work on several oilsands megaprojects is proceeding and will continue to generate tremendous economic activity in the province. There is an inventory of $120 billion worth of oilsands projects at various stages of development currently; and given the strong commitment by all stakeholders to build this resource, it will be a boon to Alberta’s economy for years to come.

Source: RBC Economic Report, Dec. 2011

These are the bylaws that legally govern the condominium project, which the buyer will be bound to live by should you decide to purchase a unit and live there.

Often the condo board distributes draft bylaws with the intent of having them registered but do not achieve the approval of the owners so the draft bylaws never get registered and too often are provided instead of the registered set. So always be sure that you get a copy of the Registered Bylaws as those are the ones that are binding.

Obtaining the registered set of bylaws from the Land Title Office eliminates the risk of errors during the disclosure process.

To purchase the registered bylaws direct from the Land Titles Office (LTO) cost is $10.00. A small price to pay to ensure you have the correct information.

Perfect starter home or fixer upper. 1249 sq.ft. 4 bedroom 2 storey home on a large pie shaped lot with apple trees. Situated in a cozy cul-de-sac. There is a roughed in fireplace in the living room. There is a huge master bedroom with wall to wall closet. The basement is partially finised and has a 4th bedroom and family room framed and drywalled. Seller is open to all offers.

It might appear that the downward pressure on valuations are easing somewhat. With 3,065 single family dwellings for sale the amount of inventory is coming down. In the last 30 days there were 656 single family homes that sold.

That give us a listing to sales ratio of 4.67:1 which is down from the previous week and hopefully is a trend that will reverse and we will see valuation rise again as I expect them to do in early spring of 2012.

That makes now a perfect time to buy with the current low interest rates that are available. To check out todays best mortgage rates visit www.edmontonmortgagesource.com