Saskatoon real estate sales grew for the fourth consecutive week and reached the highest numbers recorded for any seven day period so far this year. Local agents reported the sale of 79 Saskatoon homes for a weekly increase of 13 units and annual gains of 23.

New residential listings took a dip falling from 164 last week to 150 for this period. Still, that amounts to an increase of 20 listings when compared against the same week last year.

Sales

The inventory of Saskatoon homes for sale did not gain much traction this week. As of this morning, there are 1600 residential properties for sale with the city limits, up just four from last week’s close, and down from 1676 a year ago.

Among the properties being offered for sale are 639 condominiums, down from 682 a year ago, and 874 single-family detached homes, 24 fewer than could be found at this time last year.

Actives

Both the weekly median price and the weekly average bounced back this week as a greater number of upper end home buyers stepped into the market to make a deal. The former grew by more than 10 percent to $313,700 as the latter increased by close to 20K and reached $320,519.

Still, both of the longer-term measures we track slipped lower. The six-week average price fell for the fourth week in a row. It lost four thousand dollars from a week earlier to settle at $322,246, which is about twenty-two hundred dollars lower than it was at this time last year. Meanwhile, the four-week median price lost about 9K on the week to close the period at $311,850. That’s $5700 lower than it was as the same week last year wrapped up.

Prices

On the heels of a week that saw no sales reported above asking price, three lucky sellers completed a sale for more than they had been asking, one with a big bonus that topped ten thousand dollars. The other two sold at $100 above asking. On the flip side of the negotiating table, 66 buyers stood in for a discount and wrapped up their purchase at a price that was, on average, $13,259 below asking.

Here is a breakdown of what the sales to listing price ratio looked like on this week’s sales. Please note that those sales that do show a sale price that is greater than the list price are all new properties that spent some period of time on the market, and most likely included additional improvements that were not reflected in the original list price. We report these to you as “at list price sales”, which is likely too generous in some cases, but it’s simply not practical to obtain the full details of each sale.

List

More weekly stats and numbers for those who love them.

General

Thank-you for reading TeamFisher’s Saskatoon Real Estate Week in Review.

I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions.  Please feel free to call or text me at 306-241-6676 or reach me by email at norm at teamfisher dot com.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

Saskatoon real estate agents reported 63 firm residential sales to the multiple listing service® over the past week, five more than the previous week, to finish ahead of the same period last year by 13.

The number of new residential listings added to the MLS® remained steady towards the mid-160’s for the third consecutive week. The total number of Saskatoon homes listed came in at 164 this period, up two from the previous week, and ahead of the number listed over the same week last year by 12. This is the third week in a row in which listings finished higher on an annual basis. Three weeks does not amount to a trend, but this hasn’t happened since the third quarter of 2017, so it might be an interesting number to watch.

sales

MLS® inventory moved higher as it grew by 42 units to reach 1596, down 83 homes from numbers recorded at this time in 2018, and still lower than it has been at the close of this particular week in four years time.

Saskatoon home buyers can find 881 single-family homes on the MLS® system today, down just a bit from 900 a year ago. Condominium inventory has fallen further to 625, lower by 65 units (or 10-ish percent) from the close of the same week last year.

Active

A very active entry level market and some weakness at the upper end ushered the median sale price of a Saskatoon home lower this week to $287,500. The weekly average price moved the same way as it slipped nearly 17K to $301,529.

The six-week average price inched lower for the third consecutive week. It slipped a little under four thousand dollars to close the week at $326,342. That’s up about $2600 from where it stood a year ago, and the third consecutive week in which the measure took annual gains. The four-week median price fell lower for the third week in a row after it spiked higher through February. It slipped nearly 5K this week to settle at $320,000 to record an annual increase of $10,000.

Price

After recording some competitive buyer activity the previous week, over list price sales left the chart entirely. In fact, 61 of 63 home sellers gave up some dollars to make a deal with their buyer. Those sales recorded an average discount of $12,916.

Here is a breakdown of what the sales to listing price ratio looked like on this week’s sales. Please note that those sales that do show a sale price that is greater than the list price are all new properties that spent some period of time on the market, and most likely included additional improvements that were not reflected in the original list price. We report these to you as “at list price sales”, which is likely too generous in some cases, but it’s simply not practical to obtain the full details of each sale.

List

More weekly stats and numbers for those who love them.

General

Thank-you for reading TeamFisher’s Saskatoon Real Estate Week in Review.

I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions.  Please feel free to call or text me at 306-241-6676 or reach me by email at norm at teamfisher dot com.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

Saskatoon real estate sales in the residential category grew to 58 this past week for a weekly increase of eight. The number of sales matched those reported for the same week last year.

New listing activity continued to heat up as 162 Saskatoon homes were offered for sale on the multiple listing service®. That number is identical to those recorded the previous week, and higher than we saw during the same period a year earlier by nine.

Sales

The inventory of active MLS® listings grew by 48 this week to reach 1554. That’s down 97 units from a year earlier. While total active listing numbers remain at their lowest level for the close of week 10 for the past five years, current levels leave us with the smallest annual decline that we’ve seen this year. Spring is just around the corner and we will expect to see these numbers grow each week until late June or early July when inventory should reach its annual peak.

Today, there are 860 single-family homes showing an active status on the MLS®, down just 19 listings from a year earlier. There are 601 Saskatoon condominiums for sale today. That’s about a 12 percent decline from this time last year when 680 condos were available to buyers.

Active

Sales activity remained strong at the market’s entry level (under $200K) and the weekly median slipped lower again to $315,000. A shortage of sales above the $500,000 mark took the weekly average lower to $318,303.

The six-week average price fell about forty-five hundred dollars from last week to close this period at $330,183 for an annual increase of two thousand dollars. Meanwhile, the four week median price slipped modestly. It was down less than five hundred dollars from the previous week to $324,575 taking an annual gain approaching fifteen thousand dollars.

Price

For the first time in a few weeks we saw some competitive buyer activity that drove sale prices above the seller’s asking price. Three resale properties reported a sale price that was, on average, $1983 more than the seller had asked when they listed their home for sale. Buyers largely won at the negotiating table as 46 of 58 sales reported a sale price that was $13,218 below the seller’s listed price, on average.

Here is a breakdown of what the sales to listing price ratio looked like on this week’s sales. Please note that those sales that do show a sale price that is greater than the list price are all new properties that spent some period of time on the market, and most likely included additional improvements that were not reflected in the original list price. We report these to you as “at list price sales”, which is likely too generous in some cases, but it’s simply not practical to obtain the full details of each sale.

List

More weekly stats and numbers for those who love them.

General

Thank-you for reading TeamFisher’s Saskatoon Real Estate Week in Review.

I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions.  Please feel free to call or text me at 306-241-6676 or reach me by email at norm at teamfisher dot com.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), released national sales statistics for February of 2019 this week.

According to the report, "Home sales via Canadian MLS® Systems plunged 9.1% month-over-month in February 2019 to the lowest level since November 2012. The month-over-month decline was the largest recorded since the B-20 stress test came into effect in January of last year." The number of homes trading hands was down from the previous month in three- quarters of all local markets, including all major cities."

Highlights of CREA's report

• National home sales plummeted 9.1% month-over-month (m-o-m) in February.
• Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 4.4% year-over-year (y-o-y).
• The number of newly listed homes fell 3.2% m-o-m.
• The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) was virtually unchanged (-0.1% y-o-y).

• The national average sale price fell by 5.2% y-o-y.

Read the entire report on Canadian MLS® sales for February 2019.

Read also: CREA's updated housing forecast for 2019.

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.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

Full disclosure: this week’s sales included two mobile homes on rented land. Given the fairly low numbers of sale overall, they were really skewing prices, especially in area one. I removed these homes from the average and median price calculations for the week, but left them for the longer term measures where they were distributed over a larger sample and had less of an impact.

Sales numbers followed a fairly predictable path, given the season, as Saskatoon real estate agents reported 50 firm residential sales to the multiple listing service®, down just one from the previous week, and down two when compared to the same week last year.

Meanwhile, new listing activity came on like a spring rush as 162 Saskatoon homes hit the MLS® system. That number exceeds listings for the previous week by 25 for an annual increase of seven.

Sales

The disparity between firm sales and new listings brought about the largest single-week gain to Saskatoon’s MLS® listings inventory that we’ve seen this year. Overall, available listings grew to 1506, up from 1427 at least week’s close, and down from the 1611 Saskatoon homes available to buyers at the same point of 2018.

Condominium inventory closed the week at 599, down roughly ten percent from levels recorded a year earlier.  This morning there are 820 single-family homes for sale in Saskatoon, down from 864 a year ago.

Active

A larger number of purchases toward the market’s entry level brought the weekly median price sharly lower to $320,000. The average price of a Saskatoon home this week followed along to finish the week at $335,305.

The six-week average price was stable compared to the previous week. It came in at $334,638 which is up annually by a bit more than five thousand dollars. The four-week median price took its sixth consecutive weekly increase as it moved higher to $325,000, up from $310,000 at the close of the same week last year.

Price

Once again, overbid sales were nowhere to be found, aside from a few new home sales that likely wrapped up with some negotiated extras driving up the price. Buyers won a bit of a discount in 45 of 50 sales this week. Those sales closed below the seller’s asking price by an average of $12,200.

Here is a breakdown of what the sales to listing price ratio looked like on this week’s sales. Please note that those sales that do show a sale price that is greater than the list price are all new properties that spent some period of time on the market, and most likely included additional improvements that were not reflected in the original list price. We report these to you as “at list price sales”, which is likely too generous in some cases, but it’s simply not practical to obtain the full details of each sale.

List

More weekly stats and numbers for those who love them.

General

Thank-you for reading TeamFisher’s Saskatoon Real Estate Week in Review.

I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions.  Please feel free to call or text me at 306-241-6676 or reach me by email at norm at teamfisher dot com.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

Despite the very cold temperatures in February, Saskatoon and region home sellers found a little warmth as new listings dropped 7% and sales rose 6%.

The Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® (SRAR) reported 731 homes were listed, down from 783 in the same month of last year, while sales rose to 296 from 280.

The dollar volume of homes sold through the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) rose 4%, to $95.8 million from $92.4 million.

Year to date, listings dropped 7% to 1,591, sales were up 1% to 570, and the dollar volume was down a marginal 1% to $180.8 million.

Excluding the region, new Saskatoon listings were down 8.6% in February to 478 — the fewest since 2013 — while sales held steady with last year, rising by one to 211. Months of inventory dropped to 6.7 from 7.5 last February.

City homes listed to date in 2019, at 1,033, are at their lowest level in nine years. February statistics indicate a change in a market that has been declining for four years.

“Sales have stabilized somewhat, and inventory levels are coming down,” said Jason Yochim, CEO of SRAR (Norm’s note: The inventory of active residential listing available to Saskatoon home buyers is at its lowest point in four years for the end of February). “As an optimist, I believe and hope it will continue. However, people have to be confident that the economy is improving before committing to the purchase of a home.”

He noted that while some sectors of the economy, such as potash mining, are doing well, others are less robust. “It’s not that people aren’t working; they are. But they won’t upgrade unless they have confidence in their situations.”

The average price in Saskatoon also recovered slightly to $338,268, up 2.3% from last February. Yochim cautioned that average prices can be misleading because the basket of sales in any given month can be very different from another.

For example, if two or three high-priced homes sell, that can significantly skew the average. A better gauge, said Yochim, is the Home Price Index (HPI), which tracks prices over time based on a benchmark determined 15 years ago. Saskatoon’s overall HPI, including apartment-style condos, was $282,600 last month, down 3% from last year. The most expensive category, two-storey single-family homes, was down 1% at $356,000.

Saskatoon remains a buyers’ market, with a sales-to-listing ratio of 44; but the ratio has risen from 34 in January, for a year-to-date ratio of 40. A ratio of 50 is a balanced market, while a ratio of 60 denotes a sellers’ market.

“Even in a buyers’ market, sellers can successfully sell their homes,” said Yochim. “The most important aspect to achieving a sale is pricing a specific property to match the current market conditions.

Jason Yochim, CEO, SRAR

Saskatoon real estate sales slipped lower this week, falling from 59 the previous period to 51. That total was short of numbers recorded for the same week last year by just five. This year’s market looks a lot like last year’s. As February closed, the MLS® system of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® had recorded 412 residential sales, year-to-date, exactly matching production for the first two months of 2018.

The number of new listings that entered the MLS® system grew from 105 last week to 137 this week, which is down 20 units on an annual basis.

Sales

Active residential listings within the city of Saskatoon remained low in comparison to almost any point over the past five years. As business wrapped up for the week, inventory levels were at 1427, up just one unit from a week earlier. At the same time last year, buyers had an additional 130 Saskatoon homes to choose from. That’s far lower (300-400 homes) than it was in 2016 and 2017, when inventory levels were pushing towards new record highs.

The largest declines are seen in the condo category which has slipped to 567 from 650 a year ago. Today, there are 771 single-family homes for sale in Saskatoon, for an annual decline of 56 houses.

Active

Even without any million dollar listings in the weekly mix, the average price of a Saskatoon home inched higher to $346,159. The weekly median jumped by 60K to reach $379,000 as upper end home buyers showed up to get a deal done.

The longer term price measures fell well below last year’s levels through January, but they

Have slowly been gaining ground through February.

The six-week average price took its third consecutive weekly increase to finish the period at $334,767 for a gain of close to six thousand dollars. That still comes up short of where it was a year earlier by just over three thousand dollars. The four-week median price grew for the fifth week in a row. It closed 12K higher than it did at the end of the previous period to finish with a ten thousand dollar annual gain. Still, sample sizes remain small and price data should be taken with a grain of salt.

Price

Not a single sale reported a final price that was above asking price, except a couple of brand new homes. Those exceptions very likely closed with additional improvements being negotiated into the over-list sale price. Meanwhile, 46 of the week’s 51 sales went below the asking price generating an average discount of $10,654.

Here is a breakdown of what the sales to listing price ratio looked like on this week’s sales. Please note that those sales that do show a sale price that is greater than the list price are all new properties that spent some period of time on the market, and most likely included additional improvements that were not reflected in the original list price. We report these to you as “at list price sales”, which is likely too generous in some cases, but it’s simply not practical to obtain the full details of each sale.

List

More weekly stats and numbers for those who love them.

General

Thank-you for reading TeamFisher’s Saskatoon Real Estate Week in Review.

I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions.  Please feel free to call or text me at 306-241-6676 or reach me by email at norm at teamfisher dot com.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra