For the first time in approximately a year, the average price of a house in Whitehorse has declined.
By Tim Giilck on May 25, 2022
For the first time in approximately a year, the average price of a house in Whitehorse has declined.
The real estate market has been on fire in recent months, with steadily-increasing prices.
In the last report from the Yukon Board of Statistics covering the last three months of 2021, the average house price in the city was $647,000. That represented an increase of $48,600, or 8.1 per cent from the fourth quarter of 2020.
The bureau released its latest report on Tuesday. It shows the average sale price of a single-detached house in Whitehorse was $637,300, lower than the end of 2021 but a rise of $46,700, or 7.9 per cent, from the first quarter of 2021.
In the first quarter of 2022, the total value of real estate transactions in Yukon was $81.4 million, with $70.8 million in Whitehorse and $10.6 million for the rest of Yukon.
It’s a decline of nearly $10,000 from the end-of-year report the bureau issued in March.
The average condo sale price in Whitehorse was $419,900, a decrease of $60,100, or 12.5 per cent, from the first quarter of 2021.
However, Marc Perrault, the president of the Yukon Real Estate Association, cautions people not to read too much into those numbers if they’re thinking the bubble has burst on the property market in the territory.
The first quarter of any year is usually the slowest for real estate sales, he told the Star today.
Coupled with concerns about inflation, Perrault said, he thought that was likely the reason for the dip in market values.
Perrault said he would have to see the trend continue for a year before he would become concerned about it.
The only thing that would change his mind would be other major signals of an economic slowdown, and that’s unlikely in the Yukon.
The market and economy here are very stable, he suggested, because it’s a government-based system which prevents most wild swings and
adjustments.
People are still immigrating into the territory to take advantage of its robust economy and growing public service, as well as other opportunities, Perrault said.
He doesn’t see that changing anytime soon.
“Demand is still greater than supply,” he noted.
The only category to show record-breaking growth was the mobile-home market. It hit a record high of $467,300.
A total of 54 single-detached houses were sold during the first quarter, an increase of 19 compared to the first quarter of 2021.
There were 49 condo sales, an increase of 27 compared to the first quarter of 2021.
The average condo price was $419,900, a decrease of $60,100, or 12.5 per cent, compared to the first quarter of 2021 ($479,900).
Four mobile homes were sold at an average price of $467,300.
Seven duplexes changed hands at an average price of $471,600.
Seven commercial properties were sold at a value totalling $6.9 million
In Whitehorse, a total of 130 real estate transactions was recorded in the first quarter of 2022, a rise of 46 compared to the first quarter of 2021. Over the previous five years, the first quarter average number of sales was 100.
Thirty homes sold in Whistle Bend during the period, with a total value of $18.5 million. It was the busiest neighbourhood in the city.
Copper Ridge saw eight properties sell at a total value of $5.3 million.
Porter Creek was the next-highest, with seven properties selling for $4.4 million.
The report showed that, excluding country residential properties, which typically sell for much higher prices than other single-detached houses, the average price in Whitehorse was $626,200 in the first quarter of 2022.
That compared to $632,100 in the fourth quarter of 2021 and $580,500 in the first quarter of 2021.
In Whitehorse, the median price of single-detached houses in the first quarter of 2022 was $620,500. That means the prices of half the houses sold were above this figure and the remaining half, below.
OTTAWA – The Canadian Real Estate Association says the number of homes sold in August fell compared with a year ago as the market remained largely stuck in a holding pattern despite borrowing costs beginning to come down.
The association says the number of homes sold in August fell 2.1 per cent compared with the same month last year.
On a seasonally adjusted month-over-month basis, national home sales edged up 1.3 per cent from July.
CREA senior economist Shaun Cathcart says that with forecasts of lower interest rates throughout the rest of this year and into 2025, “it makes sense that prospective buyers might continue to hold off for improved affordability, especially since prices are still well behaved in most of the country.”
The national average sale price for August amounted to $649,100, a 0.1 per cent increase compared with a year earlier.
The number of newly listed properties was up 1.1 per cent month-over-month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
MONTREAL – Two Quebec real estate brokers are facing fines and years-long suspensions for submitting bogus offers on homes to drive up prices during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Christine Girouard has been suspended for 14 years and her business partner, Jonathan Dauphinais-Fortin, has been suspended for nine years after Quebec’s authority of real estate brokerage found they used fake bids to get buyers to raise their offers.
Girouard is a well-known broker who previously starred on a Quebec reality show that follows top real estate agents in the province.
She is facing a fine of $50,000, while Dauphinais-Fortin has been fined $10,000.
The two brokers were suspended in May 2023 after La Presse published an article about their practices.
One buyer ended up paying $40,000 more than his initial offer in 2022 after Girouard and Dauphinais-Fortin concocted a second bid on the house he wanted to buy.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
MONTREAL – The Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers says Montreal-area home sales rose 9.3 per cent in August compared with the same month last year, with levels slightly higher than the historical average for this time of year.
The association says home sales in the region totalled 2,991 for the month, up from 2,737 in August 2023.
The median price for all housing types was up year-over-year, led by a six per cent increase for the price of a plex at $763,000 last month.
The median price for a single-family home rose 5.2 per cent to $590,000 and the median price for a condominium rose 4.4 per cent to $407,100.
QPAREB market analysis director Charles Brant says the strength of the Montreal resale market contrasts with declines in many other Canadian cities struggling with higher levels of household debt, lower savings and diminishing purchasing power.
Active listings for August jumped 18 per cent compared with a year earlier to 17,200, while new listings rose 1.7 per cent to 4,840.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
