2023 Waterloo Region home sales sink to depths not seen in over 2 decades: realtors

The housing market in Waterloo Region has slumped to depths not seen in more than two decades, according to realtors.

The Waterloo Region Association of Realtors say 6,623 homes changed hands in 2023, which is 23.2 per cent below the number of sales a year earlier.

“It should not be a surprise to anyone that for the second year in a row, the housing market in Waterloo Region has been affected by higher interest rates, resulting in a significant decline in annual sales,” says Christal Moura, President of WRAR. “This year’s sales reached their lowest point in over two decades.”

The realtors noted that the last time there were less than 7,000 homes sold in the region was back in the year 2000.

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In December, which is typically a slow month for sales, the realtors say there were 285 homes sold, which is down .7 per cent from 2022 but 23.3 per cent below the previous five-year average.

The lack of sales did not seem to affect value immensely as the average sales price in December was $740,697, which is up 2.8 per cent from a year earlier. However, it was also down 4.7 per cent from November.

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House prices in the area remain well below the highwater mark of February 2022 when the average sale price was over a million dollars. Of course, that was just before interest rates began to climb which cooled the market across most of Canada.

On a year-over-year basis, the realtors say that housing prices were down 7.7 per cent to $786,033 year-over-year. That number includes a 6.1 per cent fall in the prices of detached homes as that average came in at $917,907 while the price of condos dropped on average to $481,877.

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“Waterloo Region’s slowing housing market echoes the overall slowdown we are seeing in the broader economy,” says Moura.

There were just 287 new listings in December, which is down 6.2 per cent year-over-year and well below the previous 10-year average.

In all. The realtors say there were 11,528 new listings last year, which is down 14.4 per cent year-over year but closer to the previous 10-year average.

On average, it took 30 days to sell a home in Waterloo Region in December, which is five days more than a year earlier.