With our snowless winter you might expect more people would be out house hunting. January is traditionally a slow month for home sales – we’re too busy working off the turkey dinners – but so much in the consumer world is dictated by weather. And with unseasonably milder temperatures and the lack of snow, one might expect more outdoor activity.
Weather influences so much of what we do. Nowhere can you see the fickle tendencies of the consumer than in retail. Retailers moan if there is no snow leading up to Christmas. Consumers are slow to get into the holiday spirit when the weather doesn’t co-operate. To exacerbate the situation, a slow recovery in our economy has convinced consumers to focus on paying down debt and making only very wise spending choices.
But then, that’s retail. It’s a completely different beast from making a major investment like real estate. Owning a home happens to be one of the wisest investments you can make – in any economic climate. Real estate has consistently been a great investment and nothing on the horizon will change that. Housing types and styles will change, but location, land appreciation and the desire to own a home will not.
So, when we look over the latest housing stats for January, we see that in Oakville, activity was predictably slow while Burlington showed some gains over January 2011.
In Oakville, the number of sales dropped from roughly 180 in January 2011 to 150 this past month and the average price dropped from $655,000 to $608,000. This of course, includes all residential types – freehold, townhouse and condo. This is a temporary drop and we are already seeing signs of a market that is beginning to pick up steam in February. You have to consider that Oakville is one of the most desired places to live in Canada – and as long as you have demand, you will have a healthy market for real estate.
In Burlington, sales were up by 8.4 percent in January compared with January 2011, and the average sale price increased by 10.9 percent, from $392,242 in January 2011 to $435,162 last month. Broken down, the Realtors Association of Hamilton-Burlington shows that freehold prices rose 10.6 percent while condo prices rose 4.9 percent.
“The story for the month of January is that while sales have edged up compared to last year, we are seeing significantly fewer listings than normal,” says Cameron Nolan, RAHB president. “Our listing inventory is the lowest it has been in some time.”
In the Greater Toronto Area sales were 8.8 percent higher than in January 2011 and the average selling price was up by nine percent.
“A favourable affordability picture bolstered by very low posted fixed mortgage rates has kept homebuyers confident in their ability to achieve the Canadian goal of home ownership,” says Toronto Real Estate Board President Richard Silver. “The buyer pool remains diverse in the GTA with strong interest in home types across the pricing spectrum.”
When it comes to the Toronto market, The Dan Cooper Team has strengthened its presence there with the addition of George Chisholm as one of our newest sales representatives. George brings a wealth of knowledge about the Toronto market and can help clients looking to move to Toronto or bring Toronto buyers to the Oakville/Burlington market. George has been a top performer for many years and received Royal LePage’s Director’s Platinum Award in 2010.
In concert with bringing George onto the Team, we have also heightened awareness for our brokerage and our listed properties through a new magazine that is being distributed through Toronto. Prestige sends out 42,000 copies to affluent neighbourhoods throughout Toronto to provide additional exposure for our listings. This is one more example of how The Dan Cooper Team continues to find new and fresh ways to better market your home.
Dan Cooper is an award-winning broker with Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd., Brokerage – the Number 1 Royal LePage Team for Canada in 2009, 2007, 2005, 2002, 2001, 2000 and 1999. He can be reached at 905.338.3737, direct line at 905.849.3303 or through his innovative and interactive website at DanCooper.com. Be sure to catch the Dan Cooper Real Estate Series on DailyWebTV.com. For his free booklet How To Sell Your House For Top Dollar – Fast! or his Guide to Oakville Real Estate, please call the Dan Cooper Team.
