Neck guard sales jump after Sask. hockey player slashed by skate
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It’s a buyer’s market for potential homeowners, according to the Association of Regina Realtors.
“There has not been a better point of a time, from a pricing point of view, for buyers to enter the market, probably over the last six or seven years,” CEO Gord Archibald said.
The association’s February report showed the price for a typical home in Regina and the surrounding area was $262,800, which is down from $277,000 reported for the same month last year.
The latest price decline is part of a five-year downward trend in the MLS Home Price Index, a measure meant to track price changes in what would be considered a typical home for a given market.
Archibald said the dropping prices are a symptom of a housing market with too much supply and not enough demand. He advised those looking to sell a house or condo to expect to list their properties at prices reflecting current market conditions.
“Economic factors coupled with federal mortgage stress levels are negatively affecting demand levels,” Archibald said. “Stress rules have unnecessarily taken buyers out of the market because they cannot qualify for mortgage financing even though they can afford monthly payments.”
He warned that a market with fewer potential buyers could also affect some current homeowners.
“It puts some home owners at risk that may have a high mortgage, where the actual value of the home is less than what the mortgage is,” he said.
The association’s report does show a slight bump in home sales: 197 properties were sold in the Regina area in February this year, whereas 189 properties were sold in February last year; the five-year average for sales in February is 193, while the 10-year average is 222.
And for 2019 so far, 370 homes have been sold in and around Regina; after January and February last year in the area, 360 homes had been sold.
Properties sold last month sat on the market for an average of 76 days, according to the report. That’s longer than at any time since 2011.
Archibald said he remains optimistic.
“With some positive economic growth forecasted for the year locally, we are hoping this will translate into job growth and further demand for housing. It would also help if the federal government relaxed the impact of the mortgage stress rules, allowing more buyers to qualify for financing.”