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Saskatoon real estate week in review–November 23-27 2009
Saskatoon real estate sales continued on a downward trend this week at a predictable rate for the last week of November. A total of forty-seven houses and condominiums were reported sold to the Saskatoon multiple listing service, a strong drop from the sixty-one properties last week, but up from the same week last yearwhen just thirty-seven homes were sold.


New listings of detached houses and condos also headed south but at a much slower rate falling just two units from last week to sixty-seven listings, a drop of ten units when compared to the same week in 2008.


Typically, we can expect MLS sales and listings to continuing trending down through the month of December until they reach their low point for the year during the final week of the month.



The inventory of active Saskatoon real estate listings (entire residential category) slipped again falling nine units from last week to eight hundred and seventy-three, and remaining well below last year’s level of fifteen hundred and thirty-four. Single-family detached homes are at five hundred and fifteen and the condo inventory sits at three hundred and four.


You’ll notice that our active listing chart is clearly showing that year-over-year declines in listing inventory is getting a little smaller each week in terms of real numbers. I found it interesting that the percentage decline is actually growing. When we compare year-over-year declines against peak inventory in 2008 we were off by thirty-seven percent. As of this week, the inventory of Saskatoon real estate listingsis down forty-three percent compared to the same week last year.



Cancelled and withdrawn listings fell off by more than fifty percent on a week-over-week basis to just nineteen homes. Seven of those were immediately listed again, most at a new price. Twenty-six sellers adjusted their asking price this week.


The average selling price of a Saskatoon home bounced back from last week gaining more than thirteen thousand dollars to reach $268,971, roughly twenty-five thousand dollars lower than it was during the same week in 2008. The six-week average continued to be pushed lower falling a little more than five thousand dollars on a week-over-week basis to $272,568, more than twelve thousand dollars lower than it was at this time last year and reaching its lowest point since spring of 2009. The four-week median also slid lower by about twelve thousand dollars compared to last week to finish at $263,000, down seven thousand dollars from the same week last year.


Click the image for a larger version of the graph.


The average underbid came in slightly higher than last week moving from $9,113 to $9,876. As a percentage of the selling price, homes that sold below list price went at an average discount of 3.7%, higher than last week when it was 3.4%. Clearly these numbers were skewed by a small number of large discounts including one property that was listed at nearly $230,000 yet sold for just $165,000. More than fifty percent of homes sold this week went for a discount of five thousand dollars or less, and a full eighty-one percent sold within ten thousand dollars of the asking price, which I believe would be the highest percentage this year.



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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

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MyRealPage, the people who provide us with the ability to deliver MLS listingsthrough our website are some of the industry’s best. They deliver a smooth and effective search product with regular updates to enhance the home search experience. Today, they added some nice improvements to the search functionality that I think make a huge difference for users of the search tool.


The updates are live and functional now, available behind the “Saskatoon Homes” tab at the right side of the navigation bar, just below the header image on this page.


Check out the “Show More Options” link highlighted in the image below where you can select certain styles of home (bungalow, two-storey, etc.) or specify the type of garage you most prefer.


Even better, notice the “Kitchens” drop down menu which allows you to easily identify homes with rental suites (both legal and non-legal), and just as easily eliminate them from your search results if you’re not interested in having a suite in your home.



If you’re interested in an easy and effective home search tool, you must take some time to explore ours. Here are just a few of the advantages over realtor.ca.

  • Updated far more frequently to give you quicker access to new listings from all real estate brands
  • Search by neighbourhood, map, MLS number or property address
  • More search fields for fully customized results
  • Many additional data fields displayed including taxes, days on the market and more Cooliris slideshow functionality
  • Mapping functionality for Google maps and Google Earth
  • Neighbourhood “Walk Scores” which maps amenities in each area
  • Save your favorite searches for easy access on return visits
  • Enable and disable email notifications for new listings and price reductions
  • Choose from numerous sorting and listing view options
  • Save your favorite listings for easy review
  • Mobile access to your account on an iPhone or a Google Android device
  • Easy contact options for additional information with our assurance that you’ll never be contacted unless you ask for assistance

Please check it out on our Saskatoon Homes page. You won’t be disappointed.


My thanks to Bill Skrypnyk, Technical Director for MyRealPageand everyone else who contributes to the hard work that goes into delivering a great product. You’ve been super to deal with every step of the way.


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

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Scotiabankeconomists Derek Holt and Karen Cordes address the housing bubble question examining Canadian valuations using a number of measures. They find prices to be “rich by any measure,” but conclude that they may go higher before they come down.


"Canadian house prices are rich no matter how one looks at it, but they are likely to become richer yet before material risks emerge later next year and beyond. The implications for the Canadian economy, mortgage markets, and monetary policy must, however, take full consideration of profound microeconomic differences between the Canadian and US mortgage markets. We also argue that the implications of strong house price gains on the Bank of Canada’s conditional commitment to keep rates on hold until the end of 2010Q2 are exaggerated for seven key reasons."


Read the full report here.


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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

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From RBC’s November 2009 Housing Trends and Affordability Study


The string of significant improvements in housing affordability in Canada finally came to an end in the third quarter. RBC’s affordability measures rose at the national level for the first time in six quarters for all housing types.


All provinces and major metro markets shared in the deterioration in affordability in the third quarter. British Columbia, especially Vancouver, posted the biggest increases by far in the RBC measures. Toronto and Calgary also recorded notable increases for some housing types, while the rise in the cost of home ownership in the rest of the country has generally been modest.


After steadily improving for more than a year, housing affordability in Saskatchewan deteriorated modestly in the third quarter, with RBC’s affordability measures climbing between 0.5 and 1.0-percentage points. This reflected higher mortgage payments that have resulted from the small increase in mortgage rates as well as stronger property values in many areas of the province. While the cost of home ownership declined substantially in the past year, it remains historically high in the province, as it has only partly reversed the unprecedented increase registered during the boom from late-2006 to early-2008. However, levels that prevailed prior to the boom might have been depressed by previously unfavourable migration flows, which have since reversed. Overall, resale activity in Saskatchewan continues to carry tremendous momentum, being especially vigorous in the past few months with levels close to the records set in late-2007 and early-2008.


Read the full RBC report here.


Thanks to Jen for the heads up on the release of this report.


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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

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As the Sutherland area approaches its 100th birthday the Sutherland Business Improvement District (SBID) is hoping that Saskatoon city councilwill recognize the need for a facelift on Central Avenue and approve funding for the proposed project in its 2010 capital budget.


According to a story in today’s Star Phoenix, the SBID presented a report to council last night and proposed three improvements for the main thoroughfare that separates Sutherland from neighbouring Forest Grove. SBID is recommending a “sound and dust attenuation wall” adjacent to the CP rail line, the design and construction of a “public plaza,” and an active pedestrian crossing at the 110th Street intersection.


Ward 1 councillor Darren Hill stands with the business group hoping to help make Central Avenue “more pedestrian friendly.”


Several business closings in recent years have led to a perception of a deteriorating Central Avenue. SBID and councilor Hill believe that the proposed improvements will revitalize the area.


Read the Star Phoenix story here.
Visit our Sutherland neighbourhood profile page.
Visit our Forest Grove neighbourhood profilepage.


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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

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Saskatoon real estate week in review–November 16-20 2009
Sales of Saskatoon homes picked up the pace this week with a total of sixty-one condos and single-family detached houses being reported sold to the local MLS system, an increase of nine properties from last week, and a gain of six units over the same week last year.


New listings also came on a bit stronger as Saskatoon real estate agents brought sixty-nine properties to the market, up from fifty-nine last week, but fewer than were offered up during the same week last year when seventy-eight new listings entered the multiple listing service database.


It’s definitely feeling like a fall real estate market but relatively speaking, November appears to be shaping up to be another strong month for residential real estate sales in Saskatoon. As of this morning, one hundred and ninety firm sales have been reported for November, already ahead of last November, which finished with just one hundred and eighty-one sales, and within easy striking distance of the five-year average of two hundred and twenty-nine properties.



You’ll notice on the sales and listings chart above that new listings have consistently been below last year’s level since the end of February, while units sold are above last year’s levels pretty consistently since the middle of May. Naturally, these trends have been pushing residential inventory lower since the end of May. This week was no exception, though the drop was very modest. Active listings fell by just four properties from last week to eight hundred and eighty-two, down from fifteen hundred and thirty-seven at the same time last year. Currently, single-family home inventory sits at just five hundred and sixteen, five fewer then were available last week but well off of last year’s number of nine hundred and thirty-two. At this time there are three hundred and seven condominiums for sale in Saskatoon, about the same number as last week, and below last year’s level by more than two hundred units.



Cancelled and withdrawn listing increased over last week to forty-eight homes with eighteen of those returning to the system as a “new listing,” most at a new lower price. Additionally, thirty-three price changes were recorded through the course of the week.


In spite of two single-family home sales that together accounted for $1.3 million in sales volume, an abundance of lower priced sales including condominiums and a large share of area 4 homes caused the average selling price of a Saskatoon home slid sharply this week to just $255,460, down over fifty thousand dollars from last week when it approached the weekly peak for 2009 reaching nearly three hundred and ten thousand. The six-week average fell six thousand dollars from last week, and from the same week in 2008 to $277,734. The four-week median came down two thousand dollars week-over-week to $275,081 remaining up over the same week last year by roughly five thousand dollars.


Month to date, the average residential sale price for the Saskatoon area sits at $280,106, about the level it has been at most of the year, and just slightly ahead of last November when it sat at $278,495. If the average sale price manages to maintain this level through November this will be the second month this year where we see a slight gain over the previous year.


Click the image for a larger version of the graph.


As is often the case when lower priced units trade at these levels, the average underbid slid out of the five-figure range to $9,113, nearly two thousand dollars lower than last week. As a percentage of the selling price, the average discount on those homes that sold for less than the asking price was 3.4%, the same as it was the week before. The percentage of homes that sold within five thousand dollars of the list price jumped to account for nearly half of all sales.



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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

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The educational model for becoming a real estate agent in the province of Saskatchewan changed on July 1, 2014. This post outlines the new requirements for entry with the most recent costs.


All requirements and prices are valid at the date of publication and are subject to change, without notice, at the discretion of the organizations and associations responsible.


Provincial legislation in Saskatchewan states that anyone wishing to represent members of the public in a real estate trade in Saskatchewan must be registered. The Saskatchewan Real Estate Commission(SREC), an independent, non-government agency, responsible for regulating the real estate industry in Saskatchewan, mandates qualifications for registration.


First of all, people wishing to become registered to trade in real estate as a sales person must have completed Grade 12, or equivalent.


Secondly, prospective registrants must complete a home study course known as Real Estate as a Professional Career, which is offered by the Association of Saskatchewan Realtors® (ASR). Enrolled students have one full year to complete the program. Before the conclusion of the one-year period they must present themselves for an examination and obtain a mark of at least 70%.


Once they have completed Real Estate as a Professional Career, prospective registrants must complete the following specialty courses.

  • Residential Real Estate as a Professional Career
  • Commercial Real Estate as a Professional Career
  • Farm Real Estate as a Professional Career


All three of the specialty programs are offered by the ASR on a home study basis. Enrolled students have two full years to complete all three specialty programs. Before the conclusion of the two-year period they must present themselves for an examination on each program and obtain a mark of at least 70%.


Students wishing to practice in the field of property management must also complete the following course. The cost of this course is the same as the other three specialty courses outlined below.


  • Property Management as a Professional Career


Once a person completes the mandatory courses they qualify to apply for registration to trade in real estate within the province of Saskatchewan. An application for registration as a licensed salesperson, signed by an employing broker, must be made to the SREC within two years of successfully completing the chosen specialty course. Applicants must produce proof of having obtained a Grade 12 or equivalent, and a completed criminal record check.


  Cost GST Total
MandatoryEducational Courses      
Real Estate as a Professional Career $1,332.38 $66.62 $1,399.00
Examination Fee (first attempt in included - $155 for additional) 0 0 0
Residential Real Estate as a Professional Career $760.95 $38.05 $799.00
Examination Fee (first attempt in included - $155 for additional) 0 0 0
Commercial Real Estate as a Professional Career $760.95 $38.05 $799.00
Examination Fee (first attempt in included - $155 for additional) 0 0 0
Farm Real Estate as a Professional Career $760.95 $38.05 $799.00
Examination Fee (first attempt in included - $155 for additional) 0 0 0
Total Cost for Mandatory Educational Courses     $3,796.00
       
Provincial Licensing and Related      
Registration for Salesperson License $330.00 $0 $330.00
Mandatory Errors and Omissions Premium $255.00 $0 $255.00
Real Estate Assurance Fund Levy $100.00 $0 $100.00
Total Cost for Provincial Licensing and Related     $685.00
       
Other Incidental Costs      
Criminal record check     $25.00
       
Total estimated cost to become a real estate agent in SK.     $4,506.00



You can register for these courses onlineor at the office of the Association of Saskatchewan REALTORS® located at 2811 Estey Drive in Saskatoon.


In addition, within each one-year registration renewal period, all registrants are required to complete mandatory continuing education known as the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Program approved by the Commission and provided by the ASR.

Becoming a REALTOR®

The majority of the real estate companies in Saskatchewan, particularly those located in the urban areas are REALTORS®, and all of the sales people that they employ must also be REALTORS®. In addition to expanding the potential opportunities that might exist for a real estate registrant, choosing to practice as a REALTOR® also provides access to the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®), a sophisticated system for sharing property information and commissions with other REALTOR® members. In a nutshell, the MLS® provides agents with easy access to a large inventory of homes for sale, and access to a large number of sales people for the homes an agent may have listed for sale. Agents use this system to cooperate with each other for the aforementioned benefits and typically share commissions when they successfully bring a buyer and seller together to complete a real estate transaction.


Becoming a REALTOR® requires a registrant to become a member of the Saskatoon Region Association of Realtors®, the Association of Saskatchewan Realtors®, and the Canadian Real Estate Association(CREA). Members must commit to conduct their business in accordance with the rules and regulations of each organization, and the Code of Ethics of the CREA.


Here are the costs associated with becoming a member of these organizations.

  Cost GST Total
       
Real Estate Association Joining Dues      
Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® $300.00 $15.00 $315.00
Association of Saskatchewan REALTORS® $330.00 $16.50 $346.50
Canadian Real Estate Association $200.00 $10.00 $210.00
Total Cost for Real Estate Association Joining Dues     $840.00
       
Annual Real Estate Association Dues      
Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® $50.00 $2.50 $52.50
Association of Saskatchewan REALTORS® $330.00 $16.50 $346.50
Canadian Real Estate Association (Annual dues & tech fee) $310.00 $15.50 $325.50
Total Cost for Annual Real Estate Association Dues     $724.50
       
Post Licensing Education Requirements      
Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® New Member Course $549.00 $27.45 $576.45
       
Total additional costs to become a REALTOR®     $2,140.95


That’s a brief overview of what it takes to become a real estate agent in Saskatchewan, and to become a REALTOR® in Saskatoon. If you have questions, or are interested in exploring a career in Saskatoon real estate I’d be happy to hear from you. My contact information is here.


Other resources

Association of Saskatchewan Realtors® website

Association of Saskatchewan REALTORS Career Guide (a must read)

Saskatchewan Real Estate Commission website

Canadian Real Estate Association website

Royal LePage Real Estate Career website


Please note that the estimated costs outlined above were valid at the date of publication and are subject to change, without notice, at the discretion of the billing organizations.


Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

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Saskatoon real estate week in review–November 9-13 2009
Saskatoon real estate sales slid again for the second week in a row to hit their lowest level since the week of March 16-20. Just fifty-two Saskatoon houses and condominiums were reported firmly sold this week, a drop of seventeen properties compared to last week, but still ahead of the same week last yearby twenty-one unit sales.


New listings dropped even more significantly, falling to just fifty-nine homes, down from eighty-eight last week, and less than the same week in 2008 by seventeen homes. New listing activity came in at its lowest point since the first week of January 2009 when just twenty-two Saskatoon homeswere offered for sale on the MLS system.



Total active residential listings fell again this week, but just modestly. As of this morning, there are eight hundred and sixty-three properties showing an active status, down just nine from last week, and six hundred eighty-one fewer than were available at this time in 2008. Presently, there are just five hundred and twenty-one houses and three hundred and eight condominiums offered for sale on the Saskatoon MLS system, down from nine hundred and forty-eight and five hundred and twenty respectively for the same time last year.

Active Saskatoon real estate listings at November 14 2009


Cancelled and withdrawn listing came in at just thirty-one units, with just over half of those (seventeen) immediately re-entering the system as a new listing. Thirty-one sellers made an adjustment to their asking price.


Strong sales activity in the higher priced categories, including one condo sale approaching a million dollars, pushed the average selling price of a Saskatoon home to it’s highest weekly level this year. It reached $307,444, a gain of $15,177 compared to last week, but still below the average for the same week last year by about thirty-five hundred dollars. The six-week average moved higher to hit $283,603, about forty-three hundred dollars ahead of last week, and about thirty-four hundred dollars shy of last year’s levels. The four-week median sale price advanced by seven thousand dollars on a week-over-week basis to reach $277,076, finishing roughly six thousand dollars higher than the same week in 2008.


Click the image for a larger version of the graph.


Average underbids on homes that sold for less than the asking price remained steady at $11,081, however, higher prices brought the average discount as a percentage of the asking price lower to 3.4%, down from 3.7% last week. Still, the lower discount ranges remained most active with nearly seventy percent of Saskatoon home sellers completing a deal within ten thousand dollars of the asking price.



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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

Read

Vermiculite is a mica-like mineral mined around the world and used in a variety of products including insulation. Vermiculite mined from the Libby Mine in Montana between 1920 and 1990 is known to contain asbestos, which can cause asbestosis, lung cancer and mesotheliomain people who are exposed to airborne particles.


Vermiculite was one of a number of loose fill insulation products approved for installation under the Canadian Home Insulation Program (CHIP) that provided grants to home owners who improved energy efficiency in their property between 1977 and 1984. Health Canada believes that vermiculite was installed in approximately 250,000 Canadian homes during that time. There is no information available as to where vermiculite use was most common but I can tell you that I have run across Saskatoon homes containing vermiculite insulation a number of times during my sixteen-year real estate career.


Health Canada’s position is this; “If vermiculite-based insulation is contained and not exposed to the home or interior environment, it poses very little risk.” Perhaps this provides some comfort to homeowners who have vermiculite insulation in their home, but in my own experience, the presence of asbestos is a growing concern for home buyers. Asbestos which is contained and undisturbed may never cause you or others in your home health problems but there is some significant likelihood that it could cause problems in completing a home sale when you’re ready to move. Some home buyers may be totally disinterested in purchasing a home that contains such a potentially toxic substance insisting that it be remediated as a condition of the sale, or they may walk away from the deal all together once they know.


It’s important to note that not all vermiculite insulation contains asbestos. If you suspect that you may have vermiculite insulation in your home you should avoid disturbing it. Contact a qualified expert for assistance in obtaining a sample for testing. In Saskatoon, Pillar to Post Home Inspectionsis qualified to gather samples and they can submit them to a lab on your behalf for testing. Testing costs can vary from one day to the next, but generally, a range of $150-$200 is what you should expect to pay for the service.


If vermiculite is present in your home and it does not contain asbestos, a lab report will be helpful in eliminating the concern that potential buyers for your home may have when you’re ready to sell. If it does contain asbestos, you can decide to remediate now, begin saving for an eventual remediation, or you can choose to leave it and deal with it at the time of sale. Remember though, leaving it until that late stage almost certainly raises significant concerns for your prospective buyer and could derail your sale.


One should probably consider that knowing your home contains asbestos might require you to disclose its presence when you offer the home for sale. The Property Condition DisclosureStatement (PCDS), which is not mandatory for home sellers, but is commonly used in Saskatchewan, has the following question. “To the best of your knowledge does the dwelling contain asbestos or urea formaldehyde insulation?” If you know asbestos exists, you are legally required to answer this question in the affirmative, if you choose to utilize the form. Home buyers are often suspicious of sellers who refuse to complete a PCDS. Even if you choose not to use the form a buyer could argue that disclosure is required based on the potential health implications of asbestos. In any case, professional home inspections are so common that it’s doubtful that vermiculite in your home could escape scrutiny when selling.


Health Canada has some good information online about vermiculite and asbestos including precautionary steps you can take to avoid contaminating your living space if vermiculite containing asbestos is present in your home. Check it out here.


Related posts: Asbestos in the home.


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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

Read

Saskatoon real estate week in review–November 2-6 2009
Saskatoon real estate sales retreated from last week’s unseasonably high rate, dropping by fourteen properties to finish the week with a total of sixty-nine house and condo sales reported to the Saskatoon MLS. Still, that number represents an increase of twenty-one home sales when compared with the same week in 2008.


New listings bounced higher and gained twenty-five properties from last week for a total of eighty-eight houses and condominiums, coming very close to last year’s tally for the same period with ninety-two Saskatoon homes were offered for sale. That’s about as close as we’ve come to hitting the previous year’s listing numbers since spring of this year.



In spite of the fact that new listings exceeded sales by nearly twenty homes, month end expired listings pushed the inventory of active Saskatoon MLS listingslower again to a total of eight hundred and ninety-five listings, marking the first weekly close below nine hundred units since spring of last year. Last year at this time, inventory had passed its peak and was declining rapidly, but its fall started from a much higher point and at the end of the same week in 2008 nearly sixteen hundred properties were still for sale. The current inventory consists of five hundred and twenty-two houses and three hundred and fourteen condominiums with the balance of the inventory consisting of duplexes, semi-detached homes, mobiles and vacant lots. At the close of the same week last year we had nine hundred and seventy-one houses and five hundred and twenty-three condominiums showing an active status on our system.



Cancelled and withdrawn listing remained low at just eighteen properties, and seven of those immediately returned as a new listing. Meanwhile, the Saskatoon multiple listing service processed forty-one price adjustments.


Following a couple of weeks that were uncharacteristically soft on price due to lower end market activity, the average selling price of a Saskatoon home bounced back, increasing approximately thirty-seven thousand dollars from last week to $292,327. The six-week average price made some upward gains climbing three thousand dollars on a week-over-week basis to $279,270, lower than last year’s number by roughly seventy-four hundred dollars. The four-week median also made gains picking up nearly six thousand dollars on the week and finishing about a thousand dollars behind the four-week median for this week last year.


Click the image for a larger version of the graph.


Higher selling prices brought the average underbid for homes that sold below the asking price to $11,037 from $9,807 the week before. The average discount also edged slightly higher to nearly 3.7% from 3.4% the previous week. The percentage of Saskatoon homes selling within ten thousand dollars of the asking price remained high at seventy-six percent marking the fifth consecutive weeks that it has hovered in the seventy percent or higher range. The remainder of completed deals for this week was evenly split amongst the other higher discount categories.

Average underbids on Saskatoon real estate sales from November 2-6 2009

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.


Real estate geeks can follow our daily updates on Twitter @norm_fisher.


Our Saskatoon home search tool offers MLS listings represented by all real estate brands, presented with more detail than you’ll find anywhere else. Check it out here.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

Read

The Saskatoon Region Association of Realtors recently reported October 2009 resultsfor the entire residential category of Saskatoon real estate, which includes single-family homes, condominiums, semi-detached properties, duplexes, mobile homes and vacant lots. Unit sales totaled 311 properties across all of these property types, at an average selling price of $274,759. Let’s have a look at how houses (single-family detached homes) and condominiums did in comparison to the entire residential category.


Saskatoon single-family home sales remained strong through the month of October posting an impressive one hundred and ninety-six sales, down from two hundred and thirty-six last month but ahead of last Octoberby thirty-four properties. On average, Saskatoon houses took thirty-nine days to sell, the same time as last month, and on par with the same month last year. The inventory of single-family homes showing an active status at month end was five hundred and fifty-six, down forty-four properties from last month, and far below inventory levels at this time last year when nine hundred and ninety Saskatoon houses were available. In spite of a month-over-month drop in active listings, the total supply of available houses increased from 2.5 months in September to 2.8 months by the end of October.



The average sale price of a house in Saskatoon gained some traction and climbed nearly ten thousand dollars month-over-month to reach $312,938 and trumping the average price from October of last year by roughly two thousand dollars. The median selling price finished up one thousand dollars from September and six thousand dollars higher than last year at $296,000. The three-month average price for a Saskatoon house dipped nearly two thousand dollars from last month to $307,106 or about four thousand dollars lower than the same month in 2008.



The average price per square foot of a Saskatoon house gained five dollars over last month to finish at two hundred and fifty one dollars, just below this year’s peak of two hundred and fifty-two dollars in February and slightly higher than last October’s figure of two hundred and forty-seven dollars per square foot.



Once again, Saskatoon condominium sales were exceeding all expectations as lower prices pushed unit sales higher to one hundred and three units, a gain of six properties from September, and up a whopping one hundred and fifty percent from October 2008 when just forty condos traded. Active condo listings continued to decline falling to three hundred and twenty units, down thirty-one from last month and about forty percent lower than last year when five hundred and thirty Saskatoon condos were available. The total supply of condo inventory actually fell from 3.6 months in September to 3.1 months by the close of October. The average days on the market remained steady at forty-one.



The average selling price of a Saskatoon condominium fell again, but more sharply in October than it did in September. Lower prices were fueled by ten area four sales that sold at less than $100,000. The average price finished at $209,614, down nearly sixteen thousand dollars from last month, and fifteen thousand dollars below last October’s figure of $224,919. The median price slid even further dropping nineteen thousand dollars from last month to $198,000 and closed the month twelve grand below last year’s median of $210,000. The three-month average fell three thousand dollars month-over-month to $222,485 and finished lower than last October by about eight thousand dollars.



Changes to the average cost per square foot for a Saskatoon condo were far less dramatic as it dropped just two dollars compared to September and finished the month at $217, fourteen dollars lower than the same month last year.



Remember, averages and cost per square foot numbers can provide some useful insights into pricing trends but they’re not as useful when engaging in an actual transaction. If you’re buying or selling you should be seeking current information on active listings and recent sales, which are most comparable to your property in terms of location, size, features and amenities.


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 @Norm_Fisher.


Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Vidorra

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