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Average price slips as fewer people moving to Alberta, realtors association says
1 R2 _5 l+ B% T6 V- {Bill Mah, The Edmonton Journal
$ y# A) R. B9 P6 hPublished: 1:31 am
: X, o2 a, x' cEDMONTON - The buyer still reigns in Edmonton's housing market, where the number of homes for sale has skyrocketed by 268 per cent from a year ago./ e' R* W" b( Y# i7 d6 W6 `! _
3 s* h& x m8 i8 C. ]Figures released Thursday by the Realtors Association of Edmonton show there were 9,464 residential properties available in the city area -- up by a whopping 1,220 homes from February.3 X& L( ]" O0 [* N) A* w
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That's the third-largest inventory in Edmonton history. Only last September and October were there more homes for sale at month's end, 9,918 and 9,577 respectively.6 s, w# J' u, X0 _3 r
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Association president Marc Perras said the inventory, about six month's worth, stems largely from fewer people moving to Alberta.$ C+ Y6 v0 W: o, o' r; ^/ l
& R) x& q; J; u! ~' x* wNet migration to Alberta last year was 27,048. That's down significantly from 74,523 who moved here in 2006, according to Statistics Canada data.
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$ f0 V1 m( r# ^! N8 s"We had an industry that ramped up, expecting that those numbers would keep up and now, as a result of that drop-off, we've seen inventory numbers come up fairly significantly," Perras said., }0 E; H5 \$ i- R
" O% g8 F( U) iHe predicted home prices will increase by the year's end as inventory drops and called the current situation a "stable, normal" market.2 q" D T# g" s
( A: q( j+ @. G, H9 \& M, I"Our sales volumes are similar to what we saw in 2004 and 2005 and our prices are essentially flat.5 Q; S; S+ Z' s% P/ e; k$ z1 [
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"We saw quite a roller-coaster ride last year when prices jumped up significantly in the first six months and fell off significantly in the last six months."2 O* i8 D6 l5 ?
/ A. c. L' \' ^+ `1 C) iA single-family home sold in March for an average price of $387,632, down 2.7 per cent from March last year.+ ~$ v+ t y% @ j3 [4 T3 R( w
: m' p8 A ]$ l hBut the average residential price -- including single-family homes, condos, duplexes, mobile homes and others -- was $343,760, 5.66 per cent higher than March 2007.
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There were 1,557 residential properties sold in March with new listings of 4,236 for a sales-to-listing ratio of 37 per cent. Homes spent 51 days on the market, down one day from last month.
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Total MLS sales in March dropped 31 per cent from a record-setting pace in March 2007.5 v' S6 d4 }- Z' L
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Meanwhile, a house price survey released Thursday by Royal LePage Real Estate Services says Edmonton-area houses became more affordable in the first three months of 2008.
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The study looked at certain local markets examined and found the average price of a "standard two-storey home" fell 3.7 per cent to $363,707.
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The price of detached bungalows fell 4.9 per cent to $330,000 from the same time last year. Standard condo prices also fell 7.7 per cent year-over-year to $235,000, said the LePage study.
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Ken Shearer, a Royal LePage broker and owner, said debate over energy royalties kept house prices lower.
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! E; v% b7 U+ C5 S5 ]"As a result of this debate, the market has receded from the wild pace it experienced last year as buyers are simply no longer interested in paying skyrocketing house prices," he said.
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According to the report, prices varied by specific market in the Edmonton region. Here are some highlights:. A' D8 a: L# @/ m
8 r- m+ u! u' Q) `& pSherwood Park: Average prices for two-storey homes dropped by 7.1 per cent to $390,000, while detached bungalows and condos were unchanged from last year.
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Spruce Grove: A two-storey home rose 6.9 per cent to $405,000 year-over-year.5 g# H, a0 m/ Y) K. a# c8 B& |& V+ ` @8 \
9 z" U/ r$ \3 C# W* _Riverbend/Terwilligar: A two-storey property rose by 12.7 per cent to $410,950 over the same time last year. The average price of a detached bungalow rose by 2.6 per cent to $390,000, while condo prices dropped by 10.6 per cent to $235,000.; d) A3 v8 X3 o8 l% @
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Leduc: Average condo prices rose by 9.1 per cent to $240,000 year-over-year. Two-storey house prices dropped by 7.5 per cent ($310,000.)
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St. Albert: The average price of a two-storey home fell by 12.8 per cent to $340,000 while detached bungalows dropped by 12.3 per cent and condos by 13.3 per cent.
1 N u. A+ h- C6 ?: F8 ]( T# s' }Castle Downs: Average detached bungalows fell by 18.6 per cent to $285,000. Average two-storey homes went down 11.4 per cent to $350,000.
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Clareview: Detached bungalows decreased by 8.8 per cent to $310,000, year-over-year. Condo prices fell by 16 per cent to $210,000 from the same time last year. |
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