“The Ottawa resale market, which started to
flatten out in November and December - potentially as a result of the
governments’ aim to “cool down” the market – maintained its steadiness into
January,” says Tim Lee, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “January
2013 isn’t too far off from the numbers we’ve seen in recent years, and although
the units sold are a tad lower, Ottawa remains a healthy
market.”
An economic summary of expansion in Ottawa
by Shore-Tanner and Associates indicated that the rates of growth in residents
over the age of 55, and particularly in the formation of single and two-person
households, will continue to rise in the coming years. Consequently, these
trends indicate that there will soon be a strong demand for small apartments,
condominiums, and retirement homes. “Within some areas of Ottawa, we are already
starting to see condo sales on the rise,” says Lee.
January’s sales included 136 in the
condominium property class, and 466 in the residential property class. The
condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e.
detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.), which is registered as a
condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and
timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential
properties.
The average sale price of residential
properties, including condominiums, sold in January in the Ottawa area was
$342,458, a slight decrease of 1.8 per cent over January 2012. The average sale
price for a condominium-class property was $268,604, an increase of 6.1 per cent
over January 2012. The average sale price of a residential-class property was
$364,011 a decrease of 2.5 per cent over January 2012. The Board cautions that
average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time
but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased
or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total
dollar volume of all properties sold.
