In the past few weeks, we have seen and heard of some interesting things happening in our local market. Some were indicators of an impending spring market and others were reminders that spring may not actually be here yet.
Sign of spring: Multiple (many) offers on a 1970’s townhome which sold nearly instantly for 104% of asking. Interesting to note it didn’t sell last year after several months on the market. Sign of (not yet) spring: The cold wind and white stuff refuses to go away.
Sign of spring: 34 groups (approximately 70 people) came through an open house this past Sunday with the majority when asked stating that they saw the home in the paper or online (ie: not random drive-by).
Sign of (not yet) spring: Some areas of the city are undersupplied with certain types of homes. For example, in the $200 – 300,000 price bracket in St.Catharines, there are only 32 homes for sale from Scott Street all the way north to the lake.
Sign of spring: In a completely unscientific poll of 12 other REALTORS, 11 of them reported a much increased level of activity and calls from clients (buyers and sellers) who are preparing or prepared to list/buy a home. The 12th was in Florida so they simply don’t count.
Sign of (not yet) spring: In the last 30 days there were 177 sales in St.Catharines while in the same time period in 2012 there were 197 sales. A big factor in the lower number for 2013 was that overall new listings have been down as we plow (literally) through a long cold winter.
Sign of spring: In the last 7 days, there were 55 sales with 17 of them selling at or above the asking price. These 55 sales sold for an average of 97.8% of asking. For the last 30 days, that number is still 96.8% which bodes very well for home sellers.
With spring arriving imminently, we shall see how the next few weeks play out. One thing is for sure. Buyers become sellers and sellers become buyers once the market loosens up and activity increases. That is the point at which our spring market is officially born.
Thank-you for visiting.
THEbTEAM
Thank-you to Esther Gorlee for the photo.