December home sales through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS®) totaled 164 in Saskatoon, 20 percent fewer than were sold in December of 2017. The region surrounding Saskatoon had 43 MLS® sales in December of 2018, down just one from the same period last year. The total number of residential sales for 2018 in Saskatoon was 3,329, a five percent decline compared to the previous year. 2018 is the fourth straight year of declining Saskatoon home sales. By comparison, there were 4,417 MLS® homes that traded hands in 2014, a peak sales year for Saskatoon. There was no change in the total annual sales for the surrounding region with 986 residential MLS® transactions recorded.

The total dollar volume for MLS® residential sales in Saskatoon in December was $55.6 million, down 20 percent from December of 2017. The total dollar volume for the entire year reached $1.108 billion, down eight percent from 2017. The combined dollar volume for Saskatoon and region last year was down four percent for the year at $1.524 billion.

Residential MLS® listing totals for the year were also lower than in previous years. 7,956 residential listings were recorded for Saskatoon in 2018. This is an 11 percent reduction from 2017’s total of 8,969. The five-year average for new listings in Saskatoon is 9,081 per year.

“Even though sales are down, having fewer new listings has helped,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® (SRAR). Active listings fell to 1,487 by the end of the year. This is consistent with the five-year average of 1,480 available properties and well below peak listing numbers seen in July of 2017 when there were 2,210 homes for sale in the city of Saskatoon. “Available properties will vary depending on the neighbourhood, price range and style,” cautions Yochim. “Some price ranges still have a good supply to choose from while others do not.”

When it comes to home price trends, the best indicator of what is happening with home prices is the MLS® Home Price Index. The Home Price Index establishes attributes for a typical single-family home with a base value in 2005. From that starting point, changes in value are recorded over time to get a better sense of where prices may be trending. The value for the typical single-family home when the index began in January of 2005 was $140,400. This value reached its peak in May of 2015 at $329,500. At the end of December, it had slipped to $307,000, down from $310,900 a month earlier. December’s number is virtually unchanged from a year ago, however, it had been trending downward since the middle of 2018.

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE
Chief Executive Officer – Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

Saskatoon home sales through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS®) totaled 203 units in November, a 22 percent decline compared to the same month last year. By the end of last month, a total of 3,167 Saskatoon home sales had been recorded year-to-date, down 25% from the highs of 2014, and the lowest year-to-date sales number in ten years. 

New residential MLS® listings have also been declining since 2015 when there were 9,411 Saskatoon homes listed by the end of November. This year, that number sits at 7,646 over the same period, a 12 percent decline from last year and down 19 percent from 2015. Total active residential listings fell to 1716 as November closed, comparable to the five-year average and slightly higher than the 10-year average of 1,388. At the current rate of sales, it would take just over 8 months to liquidate the current active listing inventory. “The months of inventory has been steadily increasing from 3.8 months in November of 2012,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® (SRAR).

“Even though homes were selling at 96.2% of the asking price in November, it still took two months for the average Saskatoon home to sell,” he added.

The sale to new listing ratio is a useful measure to determine if it is a seller’s market or a buyer’s market. It is considered to be a balanced market when the ratio is at 50 percent (half as many sales as listings). Lower percentages identify a buyer’s market and higher percentages indicate a seller’s market. The sales to listing ratio in Saskatoon for November was 38 percent.

Typically, when discussing home prices, the focus is on the average price. The average can be misleading and is easily skewed. If there are more high-end homes that sell over a defined period, and fewer over another, the two periods can produce substantially different averages even if values are largely stable. For instance, the average sale price in November was $343,361. That’s up from $325,016 in October. No reasonable analysis would suggest that home values are up five percent in a month. The Home Price Index (HPI) provides a better indicator of what is happening with home prices. The HPI tracks value changes over time for well-defined benchmark homes. The value for the benchmark single-family home was at $310,900 in November. The measure has been modestly trending upwards all year, showing rare year-over-year gains over October and November.

“It’s important to remember that even in a buyer’s market sellers can be successful in realizing a sale on their home,” advises Yochim. “The most important step in selling is pricing to the current market conditions.”

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

The total number of new MLS® residential listings in Saskatoon this year reached 7,111 by the end of October. This represents a year-over-year decline of 12 percent. By this time last year, 8,065 properties had been listed for sale. The number of residential listings for Saskatoon and region is now at 10,929, down ten percent from last year. New listing numbers have seen year-over-year declines each month this year.

This decline in new listings has contributed to lower inventory levels in Saskatoon. At the end of October, there were a total of 1,808 homes for sale in Saskatoon and an additional 1,095 in the regional market surrounding the city. The five-year average for active listings in Saskatoon is 1,806. The ten-year average is 1,487.

“Since 2015, the Saskatoon market has experienced higher inventories of active listings. This puts downward pressure on prices and upward pressure on the sales to new listing ratio,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®.

The average price of a Saskatoon home was $332,000 at the end of October, down four percent in a year. It’s now lower than it was two years ago by $20,000. Although much focus in real estate is on the average price, this measure can be misleading and is easily skewed by shifts in popular price ranges.

A better indicator of what is happening with home prices is the Home Price Index (HPI). The HPI establishes attributes for “benchmark homes” of various types and tracks price changes for those homes since 2005. The price of a benchmark single-family home in January of 2005 was $140,400. This category reached its peak price in May of 2015 at $329,500. Currently, the benchmark price of a Saskatoon single-family home is $312,600. That’s up slightly from last month, and $1500 higher than it was a year ago. The benchmark price for a typical townhouse in Saskatoon was $222,900 at the close of October. Apartments closed the month at $180,100.

MLS® sales were at 285 for Saskatoon in October, unchanged from the same month last year, but down nine percent from October 2016. Year-to-date, the total number of residential sales on the MLS® system in Saskatoon was 2,964, down two percent from last year.

For Saskatoon and region, the total number of sales was 4,074, a one percent decline from 2017.

“It's encouraging to see home sales at a comparable level to last year in spite of economic challenges and the “stress test” changes to financing earlier this year," comments Yochim.

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE Chief Executive Officer – Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

In the month of September, there were 268 residential sales on the MLS®. This is similar to September of 2017. The total number of sales for the first three quarters of 2018 was 2,679, a five percent decline from last year. By comparison, in the first three months of 2016, there were 2,935 sales in the city of Saskatoon.

Active listings in Saskatoon continued to shrink with a year-over-year decline of seven percent. In Saskatoon, at the end of September, there were 1,944 active listings compared to 2,082 a year ago. Active listings are higher in the region surrounding the city which includes the cities of Martensville and Warman. At the end of September, there were 1,161 available properties compared to 1,086 for the surrounding area. The decline in available properties is mostly attributable to an overall decline in new listings coming on the market. Year-to-date, there have been 6,521 properties listed in the city of Saskatoon, a decline of 11 percent compared to 2017. In the month of September, there were 648 new listings in Saskatoon. By comparison, in September of 2017, there were 767 new listings and 779 in 2016.

“It seems that sellers who are not highly motivated are choosing to wait until conditions are more favourable to sell,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®. “Currently we are in a buyer’s market with elevated levels of inventory and downward trending prices for most properties,” he adds. Year-to-date, the average price for a home in Saskatoon is $332,700 which represents a decline of four percent from a year ago. By comparison in the past three years, the third quarter average price was $347,165 in 2017 and $352,103 in 2016.

Although much focus in real estate is on the average price, the average can be misleading and is easily skewed. A better indicator of what is happening with home prices is the Home Price Index. The Home Price Index establishes attributes for a home with a base value in 2005. From that starting point, changes in value are recorded over time to get a better sense of what is happening to home prices and how prices are trending. The value for the typical single-family home in January of 2005 was $140,400. It reached its peak in May of 2015 at $329,500. Currently, this value is at $312,200 which is the highest level for 2018 and is virtually unchanged from a month earlier. The Benchmark price for a typical Townhouse style property in Saskatoon was $219,700 last month, this is the lowest point since April of 2007 when the value was $205,300. For apartment style properties, the Benchmark value of $176,200 in September was the first increase since December of 2017 when the value was at $190,600.

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE

Chief Executive Officer – Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

A media release from the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® with an overview of residential MLS® sales and listing activity for the month of August of 2018 follows.

For the seventh straight month, the number of active residential listings in the Saskatoon market was down year-over-year (it’s actually eight consecutive months, but who’s counting).

At the end of August, there were 2,019 active residential listings in the city, a decline of eight percent from a year ago. Of the active listings, approximately 1,227 are single family homes while just over 780 are condominiums. The decline in active listings is largely due to a drop in the number of homes listed this year compared to last.

To date, a total of 5,875 residential properties have been listed in Saskatoon on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®). That’s down 11 percent when compared to the end of August last year. “In a slower market, one typically sees fewer speculative sellers than in a hot market,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®. “It’s important to bear in mind that homes sell in all markets. If a seller needs to sell then they must be sure to have good advice and price to the current market conditions,” adds Yochim.

In the month of August, there were 329 residential sales through the MLS®. This is on par with August of 2018 and just slightly below the five year average of 352. Year-to-date, there have been 2,411 residential MLS® sales in Saskatoon. Of these 1,751 are single-family properties, unchanged compared to the first eight months of last year. On the other hand, 648 condominiums traded by the end of last month, 11 percent fewer than last year.

Year-to-date, MLS® sales of homes priced between $200,000 - 300,000 totaled 657 transactions, down from 707 last year. The number of homes that sold between $350,000-750,000 was also lower by just over 100 sales from 1,036 transactions in 2017. So far in 2018, a total of 41 properties have sold in excess of $750,000 in Saskatoon, on par with last year.

The Home Price Index (HPI) Value for a single-family home in Saskatoon increased slightly from July to $312,200. The HPI measures the change in value over time for a typical single family home with a standard set of attributes. This rate of change reports similar to the Consumer Price Index and is the most accurate indicator of home pricing. The HPI value for townhouse style residences declined for the month to $225,200, down from $234,400 in July. Benchmark pricing for apartment style condominiums continues to decline for the eighth straight month. Year-to-date, the average sale price was $334,226, down four percent decrease from this time last year. Average prices can be misleading as outlier sales can skew the average sale value one way or the other over a short period of time. This is why the median price of HPI value is a better indicator of the market.

Last month, the average home in Saskatoon took 52 days to sell in Saskatoon. The five year average for the month of August is 50.4 days.

For further information, please contact: Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE

Chief Executive Officer – Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

The month of July saw an increase of over 25 percent in Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) sales activity, year-over-year (Norm’s note: that is the largest year-over-year increase for any month in the past five years). In July, a total of 390 Saskatoon homes were sold, up from 310 transactions in the same month of 2017.

Year-to-date, MLS® transactions for Saskatoon were down 3.3 percent with 2,082 home sales compared to 2,152 to the end of July 2017. “Although one month does not constitute a trend, it is very encouraging to see such a significant increase in activity during a month when many buyers typically leave town on vacation,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®.

MLS® sales below $200,000 totaled 57 in July, 55 percent higher than in July of 2017. Year-to-date, sales in the same price range increased by 26 percent to 307 transactions. Homes that sold for between $300,000 and $400,000 showed an increase of 27 percent over the previous July. The number of sales year-to-date in this price range totaled 1,229 for a decline of five percent compared to sales by this time in 2017. Home sales at prices that exceeded $400,000 totaled 540 so far this year, a decline of 12 percent over the previous year. Another positive indicator is a decline in the number of new MLS® listings coming on to the market. A total of 710 new MLS® listings were added to the system in July, a decrease of ten percent over the same period of last year, and well below the five-year average of 830 listings. Fewer new listings combined with an increase in sales reduced the number of active listings from 2,109 in June to 2,048 at the end of July. The five-year average for active MLS® listings at this time of year is 1,977 units. “Lower inventory levels will help move the market from a buyer’s market towards balance and stabilize home prices,” adds Yochim.

Year-to-date, the average sale price of residential property in Saskatoon was $334,676, down 4.1 percent from the same period last year. Average prices can be misleading as outlier sales can skew the average sale value one way or the other over a short period of time. This is why the median price of Home Price Index (HPI) benchmark value is a better indicator of the market. The HPI measures the change in value over time for a typical single family home with a standard set of attributes. This rate of change reports similar to the Consumer Price Index and is the most accurate indicator of home pricing. The (HPI) benchmark value for Saskatoon single-family homes saw a slight decrease to $315,400 compared to $315,800 at the end of June (Norm’s note: a 1.3 percent annual decline). The HPI benchmark value for townhouse style properties continued on an upward trend, increasing by 1.2 percent for the month to $234,400 (Norm’s note: down 6.4 percent, year-over-year).

Last month, Saskatoon homes took an average of 49 days to sell. The five-year average days to sell during July is 48.

For more information contact:

Jason Yochim CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

Fewer homeowners were ready to put their home on the market this year compared to last. In May, a total of 943 properties were added on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Saskatoon representing a nine percent decline from last May. Year-to-date, there have been 13 percent fewer homes listed in Saskatoon.

The total number of active listings in Saskatoon at the end of May was 2,001, just slightly above the five-year average of 1,945 units. “Typically we see the highest number of active listings between May and September,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®. “It’s the most active time in our market, largely due to favourable weather,” he added. Saskatoon MLS® inventory levels reached an all-time high in July of last year with 2,210 homes for sale. At the current rate of sales, it would take five and a half months to liquidate the current stock of active listings.

In May, there were 364 Saskatoon homes sold, a decrease of 13 percent from the same month last year. Year-to-date, sales for the city are down seven percent with a total of 1,345 residential MLS® home sales. So far this year, sales have declined in every price range with the exception of the under $200,000 range which saw a 30 percent increase with a total of 203 sales. The price range with the greatest decline in sales were homes priced between $450-500,000 with a year-to-date total of 85 sales, a 17 percent drop from last year. Homes selling between $750,000 and $1M are on par with last year at 19 sales. Sales with prices in excess of $1M however are off sharply with three just MLS® sales year-to-date. In 2017, there were three home sales in May alone over $1M and nine year-to-date.

The sales-to-listing ratio fell from 43 percent in April to 39 percent in May. The sales-to-listing ratio is a comparison of the number of sales for a period of time against the number of new listings. “Saskatoon remains a buyer’s market, however, homes that are priced to market and in good condition will still command great interest and in some cases competing offers,” comments Yochim. Last month, the average home in Saskatoon took 47 days to sell. This is the lowest time to sell so far this year.

Year-to-date, the average sale price was $334,449, a four percent decrease from the same period last year. Since averages can be misleading, a better reflection of the market is the median. The median home sale price year to date is $320,000. The five year average for median residential home sale prices in Saskatoon is $341,980.

The Home Price Index Composite Benchmark Price (HPI) continued on an upward trend for most home types (except apartments) again in May. The HPI is the most accurate indicator of where home prices are trending.

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE
Chief Executive Officer
Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

Saskatoon home sales were up 6.7 percent compared to April of last year with 335 units selling last month. This represents a third of home sales in Saskatoon so far this year. Although year-to-date sales for the first four months of 2018 are down 4.8 percent from 2017, last month’s increase in sales helped to close the gap. The increase in April sales was also a welcome reversal of a two-month trend of declining sales seen during February and March. Unit sales for April showed increases for homes priced under $350,000. “Homes that are properly priced in that entry level have been seeing competing offers in many cases,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®. Sales of homes in the $400,000 to $450,000 range increased by 30 percent in April over the same month last year with 39 sales being reported.

Also of note, year-to-date there have only been two residential sales over $1M in Saskatoon compared with six for the first four months in 2017.

The number of active residential MLS® listings in Saskatoon at the end of April was 1,834. This is consistent with the five-year average of 1,830. The drop is largely due to a decrease in the number of new listings brought to the market. The number of new listings for the first third of 2018 was 2,594 compared to 3,024 by this time last year, a 14 percent decline, year-over-year.

The sales to listing ratio improved to 43 percent, up from 37 during the same month last year. The sale to listing ratio is a comparison of the number of sales for a period of time to the number of new listings. “Although the sales to listing ratio is moving towards balance, I emphasize we are still in a buyer’s market,” cautions Yochim. The increase in this ratio in April was largely due to the 6.5 percent reduction in new listings and the comparative 6.7 percent increase in sales. Last month, the average home in Saskatoon took 53 days to sell compared with the five year average of 47 days. 

The average sale price saw its first increase this year as it grew by 1.75 percent to $318,729 in April. For the first quarter of 2018, the average home sale price in Saskatoon was $333,826. Since averages can be misleading, a better reflection of the market is the median. The median home sale price increased slightly from March to $320,000. The five year average for median residential home sale prices in Saskatoon is $332,650. 

The Home Price Index Composite Benchmark Price (HPI) increased slightly for the second straight month to $294,100. This appears to indicate an upward trend for home prices going forward. The HPI is the most accurate indicator of where home prices are trending.

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE

Chief Executive Officer 

Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

A media release from the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® with an overview of residential MLS® sales and listing activity for the month of March 2018 follows.

In the first quarter of 2018, there were 648 Saskatoon home sales, a 10 percent decline on a year-over-year basis. The decrease in sales for the month of March was 24 percent with just 234 residential transactions occurring last month.

The number of new listings introduced on the MLS® for Saskatoon is also down for the quarter. There have been 1,807 Saskatoon homes listed so far this year compared to 2,183 for the same period in 2017.

At the end of March, active residential listings in Saskatoon totaled 1,670 for both single and multi-family homes, consistent with the five year average of 1,695. The inventory would take just over seven months to liquidate at the current rate of sales.

The reduction in active listings is not only the result of fewer homes being listed on the market. “Some sellers may have decided not to re-list their home just yet, opting to wait for the more active spring market to try their luck,” according to Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® (SRAR). “Many sellers believe that spring is the best time to sell,” he adds.

The sale-to-listing ratio is a comparison of the number of sales to the number of new listings for a specific period of time. Understanding this ratio allows us to determine if we are in a buyer’s market, a seller’s market or a balanced market. A ratio between 40% and 60% is considered to be a balanced market. A ratio below 40% is considered to be a buyer’s market, while a ratio exceeding 60% is considered to be a seller’s market. The sale-to-listing ratio for March was 35%, down slightly from the five year average of 40%.

Last month, Saskatoon homes took an average of 64 days to sell compared to 47 days in March of 2017. The five year average days to sell for the Saskatoon market is 50 days.

The average year-to-date residential sale price continued its steady decline falling 2%. For the first quarter of 2018, the average home sale price in Saskatoon was $333,826. Since averages can be misleading, the median price tends to be a better reflection of the market. The median home sale price continued to decline from $330,000 in January, to $317,250 in March. In March of 2017, the median price was just slightly higher at $320,000. The five year average for median residential home sale price in Saskatoon is $330,000.

The Home Price Index Composite Benchmark Price (HPI) increased slightly for the first time since June of 2017 to $293,200. By comparison, the composite benchmark has not been this low since February of 2012. The highest point ever reached was $319,600 in May of 2015. Declines to the HPI began showing signs of slowing in January of 2018. The HPI is the most accurate indicator of where home prices are trending.

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE

Chief Executive Officer 

Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

A media release from the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® with an overview of residential MLS® sales and listing activity for the month of February of 2018 follows.

A year-over-year drop in new listings contributed to a declining availability of homes in the Saskatoon market in February. At the end of last month, there was a total of 1,588 active residential listings in Saskatoon. This represented a four percent decline from a year ago when there were 1,659 properties available.

By the end of February, REALTORS® had listed a total of 1,139 residential properties for the year, a 14 percent decline compared to 1,332 listings that had been added to the system by this point in 2017.

“For the past couple of years inventory levels have hovered around 2,000 available properties,” comments Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® (SRAR). “It is definitely a positive trend to see inventory levels shrinking. This is helpful for slowing price declines,” he adds. 

Although the number of sale transactions in February (211), was down six percent from the same month last year, strong sales in January kept year-to-date sales one percent ahead of last year. Year-to-date, a total of 413 residential sales have been recorded on the MLS® in Saskatoon. The overall dollar volume for home sales in Saskatoon was just under $70 million which is down six percent from last February. The year-to-date dollar volume of transactions is unchanged from last year at $139 million.

So far this year, sales in the region surrounding Saskatoon, which includes the cities of Warman and Martensville, totaled 122 units representing, a 14 percent increase from last year. The total dollar volume for this area was just under $39.5 million for the first two months of the year, an increase of 12 percent compared to last year.

The average sale price for a home in Saskatoon slipped one percent in February. The Home Price Index (HPI) composite benchmark value declined just slightly in the last 30 days to $292,800. Although this is its lowest point since February of 2012, the decline in the composite price appears to be slowing. With the exception of a couple of months in the spring of last year, the HPI composite value has been in an overall decline since August of 2016 when the value was $317,600.

For further information, please contact:

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE

Chief Executive Officer

Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®

A media release from the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® with an overview of residential MLS® sales and listing activity for the month of January 2018 follows.

Saskatoon home sales are off to a positive start in 2018. The number of transactions that occurred in January was 203 which represents an 11 percent increase over January of 2017. The five-year average for January is 194 units. Last month’s sales activity also resulted in an increase in the overall dollar volume by 10.5 percent to $90,673,143 which is the highest dollar volume for any January since 2014. Sales in the region surrounding Saskatoon, including the cities of Warman and Martensville showed a 27.5 percent increase with 65 transactions and an 11.7 percent increase in dollar volume to $18,049,600.

“While it is still very early in the year, the past three months have shown trends of increasing sales for Saskatoon, which is certainly a positive sign after many months of lower sales”, according to Jason Yochim, CEO of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® (SRAR).

The average sale price for a home in Saskatoon was $344,771, up one percent from last January while the median price increased by 4.1 percent to $330,000. Significant increases in the number of homes selling in the higher price ranges contributed to these upward pricing changes. Overall the number of sales between $400,000 and $1 million increased by 45 percent with 64 sales. The number of homes that sold in January between $500,000 and $750,000 made up just over a third of the 64 transactions. The number of home sales between $200,000 and $300,000 remained strong and consistent with last January at 56 transactions. Many of these would be condominium sales which helps to absorb inventory in that sector of the market.

The Home Price Index (HPI) composite benchmark value declined by 4.1 percent in January to $293,300, its lowest point since February of 2012. With the exception of a couple of months in the spring of last year, the HPI composite value has been in an overall decline since August of 2016 when it was at $317,600.

“If inventory levels continue to decline due to absorption and fewer properties being listed, we should expect to see some increase in home prices later in the year,” predicts Yochim. The number of active listings in Saskatoon at the end of January was 1,529, the lowest level in the past three years for January and a four percent reduction from last year. This was aided by the increase in sales and a 14 percent decline in the number of new listings for January.

Jason Yochim CAE, CRAE

Chief Executive Officer

Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®