Windsor-Essex’s real estate market is red hot, according to Windsor real estate agent Adita Soma who says he has never seen housing prices so high in the region.
According to the recent report by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), the average home price in the area is $401,465, which is an increase of $65,422 — or 19 per cent — from last June’s prices.
Soma attributes part of the price increase to the growing demand of buyers from outside the region who can work from home and no longer find it necessary to live in a big city as a result.
“A lot of people who’ve got flexibility to work from home — who are living in bigger cities, like Toronto and Vancouver — those are the ones looking to move,” he said.
“With the amount of rent they used to pay in Toronto and Vancouver, … now they can buy a house in Windsor and literally that rent can cover the mortgage and expenses.”
According to the recent report by the Canadian Real Estate Association, the average home price in Windsor-Essex is $401,465, which is an increase of $65,422 — or 19 per cent — from last June’s prices. (Tahmina Aziz/CBC)
Soma said the housing boom during the pandemic is “not at all expected because so many people lost jobs and so many people are suffering,” but adds supply and demand may a factor, since there is low supply in Windsor but a lot of buyers are looking to put in their money.
He said it’s a good time for home buyers to sell their homes.
Savio Almeida, an investor in Windsor who came from Oakville in 2017, said Windsor’s housing market is what brought him to the city.
Savio Almeida, an investor in Windsor who came from Oakville in 2017, said Windsor’s housing market is what brought him to the city. (Tahmina Aziz/CBC)
“If you look everywhere else in the GTA or closer to the Toronto area, houses are unaffordable. People can’t afford to buy houses nor can they afford to rent them,” he said, adding that the entry barrier to the housing market in Windsor is much lower compared to other cities.
“From the investor point of view or for a homeowner point of view as well, if they want to buy something, they can still get big homes or big lots versus in the Toronto area where you’re getting a tiny piece of land …and costs may be double, triple even,” he said.
Soma says hosting open houses is different during the pandemic — interested buyers are expected to sanitize their hands, wear gloves and masks and avoid touching anything. (Tahmina Aziz/CBC)
Almeida, who owns five properties in the city, said he feels great to see it appreciate so rapidly, adding that there may be times where the market dips, but it will negate overtime.
He also said he’s noticed a steady rise in interested buyers both within and outside of the region.
In addition to the lower housing prices, Soma said Windsor makes it an attractive city to buyers and investors because of its close proximity to Detroit, low traffic, relatively warm weather and views, the casino and the imminent construction of the mega hospital.
He said it’s hard to predict where the market will go in the coming months but is optimistic that Windsor will see continued growth.
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.
