Ottawa home sales cooled in November, but the price of buying a new home increased 4.6 per cent last month.
The Ottawa Real Estate Board says 1,059 homes and condominiums were sold in November, down from 1,179 units sold in October. A total of 724 units were sold in November 2023.
The report shows the average price of homes sold in Ottawa last month was $667,098, up from $633,138 in November 2023. According to the Ottawa Real Estate Board, the benchmark price for a single-family home was $722,400 (up 2.1 per cent from November 2023) and the benchmark price for a townhouse was up 0.3 per cent to $491,500.
The benchmark price for an apartment was $406,200 in November, down 3.7 per cent from November 2023.
“Ottawa’s market is making headway on a long road back from the slowdown experienced in 2023,” Curtis Fillier, past president of the Ottawa Real Estate Board, said in a statement.
“Buyers have been slow to come back to the market while watching the interest rates lower, and some are waiting to see how new mortgage rules — the extended amortization period and the increased default insurance cap — coming into effect in December may redefine their purchasing power. Sellers have noticed that caution and those who can are likely holding on for a more active spring.”
The Bank of Canada will make an announcement on interest rates on Wednesday. The Central Bank reduced its key rate by half a percentage point in October in response to inflation returning to target.
The real estate board says there were 4,036 active listings on the market at the end of November, up 38.2 per cent from last year.
The report does note the number of new listings dropped 7.3 per cent last month compared to November 2023. A total of 1,352 new residential listings were on the market in November.
A total of 12,882 homes were sold in the first 11 months of 2024, up 11.8 per cent from the same period last year.