Saskatoon real estate: Week in review (February 25-29 2008)
New Saskatoon real estate listings topped 100 for the fourth week in a row but brisk sales activity prevented inventories from making any significant gains. We finished the week with a total of 370 active residential listings including 204 houses (single-family homes) and 127 condominiums. Important note: due to pending changes with the Saskatoon MLS system, no sales were processed on Friday so active listings and sales figures from this week are slightly off.
A total of 92 Saskatoon homes traded hands, a slight decline from reported sales last week. The percentage of homes that sold above the asking price took a jump forward to about 37% of all sales processed. The average overbid increased as well, pushing towards $15,000 and reaching its highest level since the week of November 19-23, and more than double what it was for the same week last year.
The average selling price of a Saskatoon home exceeded the average asking price for the first time since the week of October 1-5. On average, residential properties fetched about $800 more than the asking price. Still, 39 savvy buyers managed to negotiate a below list purchase at almost $7,600 below the asking price.
Notable sales
- 1,000 square foot four-level split with a double garage in Lakeview will set you back $369,000.
- Lakeview apartment at 878 square feet goes $19K over list at $199,000.
- East College Park bungalow of 1,040’ with no garage is $310K.
- Avalon bungalow of 1,186’ with a single garage sells $64 over asking price at $390,000.
- Eastview apartment at 880’ fetches $218,000.
- River Heights two-storey at close to 2,000 square feet sells $47K over at $502,000.
- 1000 square foot Hudson Bay Park bungalow with a single garage goes $38K over at $308,000.
See a Google map displaying the boundaries of Saskatoon real estate “areas” here
Data collection and calculation for our statistical reports
I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions. All of my contact info is here. Please feel free to call or email.
Follow our daily updates on Twitter @SaskatoonHomes.
Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Saskatoon Real Estate
16 comments so far. We'd love to hear your thoughts.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:56 PM
WOW, check out that condo sale in Lakeview! Last January the price would have been half that. Very interesting.
Norm, alot of younger people in their mid 20′s I know are stretching their financials as much as they can, panic mode to get into the market before the “looming spring boom”. I don’t know if it’s all hype or what the story is? Many people I know, before the increase in prices, were comfortable renting and didn’t even have the idea of purchasing a home on their mind. Now that the prices have risen dramatically all they talk about is getting into the real estate market. It is quite strange how the typical human psychology operates.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:57 PM
Young man,
I evaluated one just like it last January at a suggested list of $109,900. Not quite half, but close. This one was in that Stillwater project where they’ve done the stucco exteriors. They typically sell for more money than any of the other comparable condos in Lakeview.
“It is quite strange how the typical human psychology operates.”
You’ve got that right. You have to wonder why these people weren’t getting busy during the fall lull. There was far less competition then.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:57 PM
Norm
It is possible, that one of the effects that was stopped the first time buyers from purchasing last fall was all the unbussers proclaiming that the bottom was falling out of the market. Buying a home for the first time is a hard decision at the best of times. If a home is purchased at that time and the bubble burst then the combined cost to sell and market losses could well be greater that the equity. This would result in a loss of initial deposit plus a bill to get out. At least now if one bought now, with the market rising (if one can admit that the market is rising, which may be hard for some of the unbussers) and for some reason one had to get out market there would likely be a small profit and not a bill.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:57 PM
Brian,
Thanks for the comment. Indeed, we are all speculators, always speculating. No doubt there was some nervousness following that massive bull run. Our minds tend to be limited by our own experiences and I would have never dreamed that such things would happen in Saskatoon. I have found myself back and forth several times. I still keep asking, “How long can this go on?”
Quick point, if you don’t mind. There is no “bill” to break a residential contact of purchase and sale, provided that the buyer is a natural person and the purchase is intended as a primary residence. Recovery of damages that a seller might suffer as a result of a buyer’s failure to complete are limited to the amount of the deposit.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:58 PM
It’s amazing to me that anyone thought the market was collapsing last fall.
It’s unfortunate when people sit on their hands and do nothing for fear of buying too high, only to be left further behind as the market climbs.
Pretty sure this spring will see only minor increases compared to last year. People seem to have a better understanding as to what homes are worth, and what is a reasonable bet these days.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Norm
That true but what if I was to buy , take possession and the market goes into a down turn, which was more likely last fall than now.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Hi Jeff,
I don’t think there were many predicting a collapse but there were some smart economists using the “overvalued” word as we moved into the fall. Those same people have since predicted above normal increases for Saskatoon this year.
It seems obvious that prices can’t do what they did last year, but I have to say that I think we’re further ahead than I thought we might be already. I’m sure glad that I’m not having to get in now.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Brian,
Point taken. This is probably the prudent way to be thinking and far too few buyers think about the “what if.” Anyone buying in these kinds of markets should be feeling certain that they’ll be hanging around for a while. I can’t imagine a worse position to be in financially than to owe more on something than it’s worth, especially something with such a hefty price tag. It would be absolutely gross to have to come up with 10-20K in order to be able to sell your home.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:59 PM
“Lakeview apartment at 878 square feet goes $19K over list at $199,000.”
I have one of these, paid $78,500 back in 2005. Great building, very well-managed. Rents have risen 25 percent in the last 13 months. When I bought the caretaker told me I was crazy, “no one should pay more than $65k,” he said. That really bugged me at the time and never in my wildest dreams, having studied Saskatoon real estate prices over the past few decades, did I think it would be worth $200k today.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:59 PM
callum,
Truly bizarre. Nothing has seen more price pressure than these apartments.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:59 PM
I see that the saskhouses.com site reports brisk sales against rising asking prices. There certainly are speculators working this market. Having said that, the fundamentals behind Saskatoon’s economic boom seem solid and sustainable. If we look at stocks (such as Potash Corp.) and commodities that are percieved to be related to the Saskatchewan economy, they are in strong uptrends. I’m thinking that this boom has legs.
May 19th, 2009 at 3:59 PM
Norm, any idea why the Stoon Real Estate Board stopped updating their web stats: http://srar.ca/Srarstats.php3#Month
May 19th, 2009 at 4:00 PM
callum,
SRAR is launching a new MLS system province wide today and a great day of focus has been there over the last little while.
You can find SRAR’s monthly stats on my website at http://www.teamfisher.com/MLS__Stats/page_1723681.html and the numbers are up to date there.
May 19th, 2009 at 4:00 PM
Interesting article:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23439843/
“approx. 15 million home owners (in the usa) now owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth”.
Could this happen in Canada? Perhaps.
May 19th, 2009 at 4:00 PM
Happy Chappy
The experts at the banks say, not this year in Western Canada, but it could happen in Eastern Canada. Sub prime lending in the US = economic turndown in Us = less demand for Canadian mostly manufactured in eastern Canada. Western Canada on the other hand has smaller manufacturing economy and a larger resource based economy and that’s what is protecting us in the West.
May 19th, 2009 at 4:01 PM
Thanks!
Those numbers are eye-popping!