Joni MacFarlane, Editor - Crowsnest Pass Promoter - November 20, 2009
According to recent news' stories, sales activity in the housing market reached record levels in Canada for the month of October, buoyed by strong residential real estate markets in Western Canada. Sales for October in Alberta increased by 29.6 per cent from last year and the average sale price jumped by 2.6 per cent.
So is the Crowsnest Pass keeping up with the trend?
According to long-time local realtor Wendy Valley of Sutton Group, things are definitely picking up.
"The market has stabilized and there's activity in other areas [outside cities]", said Valley.
"We're also seeing quite a few first-time homebuyers which is very encouraging."
There are currently 74 single-family homes for sale in the Crowsnest Pass.
Valley said this past spring and summer were slow, but the numbers this fall show there continues to be a steady increase in activity.
From September to mid-November, 20 single-family homes have sold, compared to 17 in 2008 and 16 in 2007.
Going back further, there were 34 single family homes sold between July and mid-November, compared to 30 in 2008 and 35 in 2007 when the market was peaking.
According to the Lethbridge Real Estate Board, people are getting 95 per cent of their listing price.
These numbers are for single-family houses only and exclude houses listed with other real estate boards, or any private or exclusive (non-MLS) listings. They don't include condos, bare lots or acreages.
Valley said that while it's hard to make conclusions about whether prices have come down or not because of the diversity of houses in the Pass, she believes there is more room for negotiation than there was in peak times.
"People might not be getting what they got a couple of years ago, but there's not a huge drop [in price]," said Valley.
At the national level, total unit sales were up 41.5 per cent across the country with an increased average sale price of 20.7 per cent from a year ago.
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For information on homes for sale in Crowsnest Pass and area, call me at 403-564-4518 or email johnprince@shaw.ca.
John Prince, Alberta licensed real estate agent,
Century 21 'The Professionals' (
Crowsnest Pass). Serving the Crowsnest and area. Call me directly at 403-564-4518 or by email at:
johnprince@shaw.ca
