Supply challenges are continuing to have an effect on Saskatchewan’s housing market.
New listings remained well below traditional levels seen in the month of January. On the sales end, only 748 units were sold in the month, showing a steady decline since last year’s boom.
The Saskatchewan Realtors Association (SRA) says it is continuing to try to understand what factors are affecting housing supply in Saskatchewan. SRA states it’s everything from labour and supply shortages to land costs, lending rate increases, the pandemic and remote work, along with increased immigration and economic growth. All these are contributing to gaps in the housing market, sparking worry about inventory issues continuing to decline.
“We’re still very fortunate in Saskatchewan,” said SRA CEO Chris Guerette. “We have for the most part healthy housing continuum and there is choice in there, but were very concerned about the next few months the next year in terms of how is that going to shake out.”
Guerette warns price increases may continue as the year goes on.
For the city of Regina, sales in January eased over the strong levels recorded last year but remained above the 10-year average. The SRA states that new listings did ease slightly over last year’s levels, but with 316 new listings for the month, the sales to new listing ratio eased to 53 per cent, slightly lower than the 57 per cent recorded last year.
For the city of Saskatoon, January sales eased over last year’s levels, but with 230 sales for the month, activity remained consistent with long-term trends. The SRA stated that inventory levels remained exceptionally low for January with 881 units, which is over 30 per cent below longer-term averages and the lowest January levels since 2010.