The London and St. Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR) is reporting that while property demand remains an issue, home sales increased for the fourth consecutive month.
According to LSTAR, there were 723 home sales in the month of April, and 964 properties came onto the market. The overall sales-to-new listings ratio was 75 per cent, down from 63.5 per cent in March.
“Since the beginning of 2023, we’ve been noticing steady month-over-month increases in the number of home sales and prices, which indicate that the property demand and the housing supply issue are still there,” said Adam Miller, president of LSTAR.
“Both of these are also demonstrated by the sales-to-new-listings ratio, which skyrocketed in April, and by the dwindling housing inventory.”
While the overall home price increased by only around $11,000, the average home price of $664,149 in April is up considerably compared to the January mark of $585,252.
Single-family homes continue to be the most popular purchases in the area, with 519 units sold. One hundred condo townhouses and only 61 apartment units were sold.
“Since the Bank of Canada pressed the pause button on interest rate hikes, single-family homes saw month-over-month gains in their benchmark prices,” says Miller.
Year over year, sales activity in the London-St. Thomas region is down 17.7 per cent in the month of April, and the average price is down 13.1 per cent. Further, the median days on the market have more than doubled from seven days in 2022 to 15 days in 2023.