Waterloo Region home sales slump to lowest total in years, realtors say

Just 280 homes changed hands in Waterloo Region in December 2022, a number that has not been seen in many years, according to the Waterloo Region Association of Realtors.

“The number of homes sold in December was lower than any single month in well over a decade, marking an end to a turbulent year for home sales in Waterloo Region,” WRAR president Megan Bell stated.

The group also released its year-end totals on Thursday as 7,770 homes were sold across the region in 2022, which is down 24 per cent from 2021.

Realtors say this is also 12.4 per cent less than the average over the previous five years and 8.2 per cent below the previous decade.

The average cost of buying a home in Kitchener-Waterloo peaked in February at $1,007,109 and has been steadily declining ever since.

In December, the realtors’ monthly report says that on average, a home sold for $720,596, which is a 2.1 per cent decrease from November, when the average home sold for $736,024.

Similarly, the average price of detached homes also continued to slump as it fell to $825,450, which is down 1.7 per cent from a month earlier, when that price was $838,609.

“After home prices crossed the million-dollar threshold in February of 2022, we close out the year with average and benchmark prices back to where they were prior to them surging in early 2021,” Bell said.

“It’s clear that the decline in sale prices has been a direct response to the successive interest rate hikes by the Bank of Canada throughout the past several months, however, with interest rates predicted to stabilize, we should see a steadier market in 2023.”