Calgary, October 1, 2008 – The buyer’s
market trend continues, according to
fi gures released by the Calgary Real
Estate Board (CREB®).
In a news release issued yesterday, by
the Canadian Real Estate Association
(CREA), President, Calvin Lindberg
said, “We must remember that all markets
go through cycles and remember that the
national housing market is actually made
up of different communities. Real estate
markets are local and every community,
and every area, is different in terms of
trends and pricing.”
CREB® President Ed Jensen concurred
with Lindberg, saying, “We can see these
cyclical affects in our own local Calgary
market. Some communities in our city
are stabilizing, while others are in the
midst of a market shift.”
Single family Calgary metro new listings
added for the month of September
totaled 2,631, a decrease of 15.3 per cent
from September 2007, when new listing
added totaled 3,106 and an increase of
15.9 per cent from last month, when
new listings coming to the market were
2,270. Calgary metro condominium new
listings added in September 2008 were
1,186, showing a decrease of 9.8 per
cent from the 1,315 new condominium
listings added in September 2007 and
a decrease of 12.5 per cent from last
month’s condominium listings of 1,054.
Single family Calgary metro sales for
the month of September came in at
1,152, showing an increase of 8.3 per
cent from the 1,064 sales in September
2007 and showing a decrease of 1.5 per
cent from last month’s sales of 1,170.
Condominium sales for the month of
September were 465, a decrease of 3.7
per cent from the 483 condominium
sales recorded in September 2007 and
showing a decrease of 6.1 per cent from
August 2008 when 495 condominiums
changed hands.
“The number of single family homes
selling in the $200,000 to $250,000 price
range has increased this month by 50 per
cent over last year. And while single
family homes selling within the $350,000
to $450,000 price range have remained
almost the same as they were in September
2007, another signifi cant change is the price
range of 450,000 to 550,000, seeing a 19
per cent decrease in the number of units
sold,” explained CREB® President, Ed
Jensen. “In short, more homes are selling
in the lower price ranges, indicating that
the favourable price range has shifted to
one lower than that of 2007. Clearly, it’s
still a buyer’s market and the opportunity
for fi rst time home buyers, to get into the
market, is better than it’s ever been,” Jensen
concluded.
The median price of a single family
Calgary metro home in September 2008
was $395,000, showing a decrease of 6.1
per cent from September 2007, when the
median price was $420,500 and down
0.8 per cent from last month when the
median price was $398,000. All Calgary
Metro MLS® statistics include properties
listed and sold only within Calgary’s City
limits. The median price is the price that is
midway between the least expensive and
most expensive home sold in an area during
a given period of time. During that time,
half the buyers bought homes that cost
more than the median price and half bought
homes for less than the median price.
The average price of a single family
Calgary metro home in September 2008
was $444,048, showing a decrease of 5.7
per cent from September 2007, when the
average price was $470,888. The average
price of a Calgary metro condominium
was $287,426, showing a 10.6 per cent
decrease from September 2007 when the
average price was $321,614. Average price
information can be useful in establishing
trends over time, but does not indicate
actual prices in centres comprised of widely
divergent neighbourhoods or account for
price differentials between geographical
areas.
The Calgary Real Estate Board is a
professional body of 5,692 licensed brokers
and registered associates, representing
262 Member offi ces. The Board does
not generate statistics or analysis of any
individual member or company’s market
share. All MLS® active listings for Calgary
and area may be found on the Board’s
website at www.creb.com. |