Ottawa’s resale housing market continued to favour sellers in May, with declining inventory leading to faster sales and multiple offers for properties in the most popular neighbourhoods, the Ottawa Real Estate Board reports.
In May, condo units in Ottawa sold in an average of 26 days, down from 33 in April. Residential-class properties sold in an average of 23 days, down from 27 in April, the Board reported.
Total transactions were also up. Members of the Board sold 1,939 residential properties in May through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service (MLS) System. That’s a 6% increase from the 1,830 sold in May of 2022. The five-year average for May sales in Ottawa is 1,961.
It was the first month since February of 2022 that Ottawa’s market saw more properties sold than the same month a year earlier.
“Typically the highest-selling month, May’s transactions did not disappoint,” said Ken Dekker, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “With only five to six weeks of inventory (the time it would take to sell all inventory if no new properties were added) we are in a strong seller’s market. With the pent-up demand and sales volume increasing, we are likely to see upward pressure on prices as demand continues to outstrip supply.”
The key numbers from Ottawa’s market in May:
Average sale price of a residential-class property: $745,902. That’s down 7% from the average in May of 2022, but on par with April’s numbers.
Average sale price of a condominium-class property: $442,859. That’s down 6% from the average in May of 2022, but it’s up 2% from April.
Months of Inventory for Residential-Class Properties: (The time it would take for existing inventory to sell out if no new properties were added): 1.5 months, down from 1.9 months in April.
Months of Inventory for Condo-class Properties: 1.3 months, down from 1.9 months in April.
Average Days on Market, Residential-Class Properties: 23 days, down from 27 days in April and 34 days in March.
Average Days on Market, Condo-class Properties: 26 days, down from33 days in April and 39 days in March.
With lower than usual inventory in Ottawa and if there are no interest rate hikes in coming months, Ken Dekker says he expects the second half of 2023 will see Ottawa’s market reach average sale prices that are above where they were in the same month a year earlier.
“It is a promising year for sellers, barring any interest rate adjustments, as we saw a correlated drop in sales every time there was an interest rate hike in 2022,” he says.
“Given our housing stock challenges, some neighbourhoods are again in multiple-offer territory. Realtors have up-to-the-minute market data and are best positioned to help both buyers and sellers in this evolving competitive resale market.”
As always, the Ottawa Real Estate Board cautions that while the average sale prices for a specific month can be useful in establishing trends over time, they should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value.
As with any city, prices and price changes in Ottawa will vary by neighbourhood.
If you’re considering buying or selling property in Ottawa, I’d love to tell you more about the current market and conditions in your area of the city.
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