This is a follow up from my post of Jan 27th. As of Feb 5th, 2021, we are still seeing a heated market. Inventory has increased slightly as sellers jump in to take advantage of the increased sales volumes and demand for resale homes. A significant factor driving the market is the Move Up. This is were people sell their home to buy a home that is larger or has a better floor plan to fit their needs. Ie; Home office. People in secure jobs are feeling more and more comfortable committing to spending more money on a home. Interest rates are incredibly low. Working from home for upwards of a year has made many employees and employers realize the benefits and that this maybe a permanent way of doing business. The savings in gas, parking costs, vehicle maintenance, and time savings are all factors that come into play when considering increasing ones mortgage payments. If on average, a person spends $250/mo in gas commuting, $400/mo in parking, $200/mo in wear and tear on their car, and on average 1 hour per day commuting it adds up to a lot of money. At a cost of approximately $40/mo per $10,000 financed on a mortgage, a person can afford a house worth $60,000 to $210,000 + more without changing their expenses. The most precious resource saved is time = 21+ hours a month. Imagine what you could do with those hours!
First time buyers are feeling the need to jump in while the market is strong on the hope of making some gains and getting in while they can before prices jump too much. This may explain some of the factors effecting our real estate market.
Stats for the Calgary Detached Residential Home Market Jan 15 - 31, 2021;
Current inventory for sale 1,564
Sales in last 2 weeks of Jan 2021 = 506
Increase in sales volume over last year same time = 47%
% of homes selling at list price or higher = 19.4% = Multiple offers at the same time
% of homes selling within 1% of list price or higher = 32.6%
Last 3 years numbers for the same time frame:
2020 had 345 sales with 9.3% selling at list price or higher
2019 had 337 sales with 5.9% selling at list price or higher
2018 had 379 sales with 14.8% selling at list price or higher
Breaking it down by price category;
Jan 15-31 2021 vs Jan 15-31 2020
$400,000 and under; 11% gain in vol with double the number of homes selling at list price or higher
$400,000-$600,000; 52% gain in vol with 4x more homes selling at list price or over
$600,000-$800,000; 65% gain in vol with 3X more homes selling at list price or over
$800,000 - $1mil; Twice the number of sales with 65% more homes selling at list price or over
$1mil +; Twice as many homes sold with 3X number selling at list price or over.
Apartment sales were up slightly (15% gain in volume) with double the number selling at list price or over.