Real Estate Market Sales Activity in April for London Ontario

The results of April home sales are in and the London area proved to be very active. Detached home sales increased by 1.8% over April of 2008. This is very surprising stat - I expected the numbers to be good given the activity and interest I've seen generated over the last couple of months - but these numbers are very solid. Condos sold decreased 26% for April of 2008.

This continues with the theme I've reiterated over the last 6 months - London real estate market was in a good situation, is currently in a good situation, and will be in a good situation in the future.

I think we are closer to a neutral market now (split even between buyers/sellers market) then the buyers market we say in December for example. I'll have to crunch the numbers in a future post.

Below is part of the press release. The full release can be read HERE

Last month, 804 homes exchanged hands in the jurisdiction of the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS® (LSTAR), including 666 detached homes (up 1.8% from April 2008) and 138 condos (down 26.6% from April 2008). Year to date, 1,840 detached homes and 414 condos have been sold - down 15.1% and 26.9% respectively compared to the same period in 2008.

"April sales have increased by 20% over March - that's great news, especially in a tougher economy," says Joe Hough, LSTAR President. "We have now seen detached home sales move from being down 35% in January, down 30% in February, down 7.2% in March, and now they are up by 1.8%. The federal government incentives announced in the last budget, including the increase in the maximum withdrawal allowed under the Home Buyers' Plan to $25,000, and the First Time Buyer Tax Credit, have certainly influenced April's sales."

Hough says the average residential price is also improving. "Year-to-date for April 2009, the total residential average price is down 1.8% to $207,591, compared with a decline of 2.7% in March, 2.4% in February and 2.8% in January."