Real estate prices remain high in Kitchener-Waterloo, realtors say

Housing prices continue to hold steady in the Kitchener-Waterloo market although they remain dramatically higher than a year ago, according to numbers released by the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors (KWAR).

The realtors’ group says that the average sales price of a home in the area was to $637,691 in September, about 17.5 per cent higher than it was in September 2019.

While that is still a massive change it is about on par with sales prices in August ($634,409) and July ($639,814.)

While the average cost of a home appears to be stable for now, the cost of a detached home jumped last month to $768,762, an increase of 25 per cent over a year earlier and 4.4 per cent over August ($734,427) and 3.1 per cent above July ($745,149).

2:05 Coronavirus: Real estate market in Ontario’s cottage country experiencing boom

The cost of a detached home painted a similar picture as it increased by 18.9 per cent year-over-year to $734,427 but was down slightly from July’s lofty heights of $745,149.

An unusual number of homes (686) changed hands in August and that trend continued in September, as 758 residential properties were moved last month.

While September is traditionally the kickoff to the fall real estate market, KWAR says that it was a record for the month.

“This is far more home sales then what we would normally see in September as buyers continue to play catch up from the COVID-19 hindered spring market,” KWAR president Colleen Koehler said in statement.

“While the pandemic has had devastating impacts on many aspects of our lives it has only solidified the importance of home and homeownership.”

Thankfully for prospective home buyers, a ton of inventory also came to the market as there were 929 new listings added to the system in Kitchener-Waterloo, an increase of 13 per cent year-over-year.

“We saw more new listings coming to the market in September which was welcome,” Koehler said. “However, demand continues to outpace supply.”

She believes that the increasing number of employers enabling staff to work remotely has caused more people to look at the area due to its more affordable homes.