KITCHENER-WATERLOO, ON (December 3, 2020) ––There were 575 residential homes sold through the Multiple Listing System (MLS® System) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® in November, marking another record-breaking month of homes sold in the Kitchener-Waterloo area. November’s home sales represented an increase of 35 percent compared to the same month last year, and a decrease of 17 percent compared to the previous month. The previous ten-year average number of residential sales for November is 433.
November is the fifth consecutive month of record home sales in the Kitchener-Waterloo area.
“We are now well beyond any pent-up demand from the first lockdown,” said Nicole Pohl, President of KWAR. “Now we’re simply dealing with straight-up demand for our community as an attractive place to put down roots, and the current COVID-19 pandemic is only further fuelling the already hot market and elevating Waterloo region as a desirable place to own a home.”
Total residential sales in November included 341 detached homes (up 28.6 percent from November 2019), and 82 condominium apartments (up 60.7 percent). Sales also included 112 townhouses (up 53.4 percent) and 40 semi-detached homes (up 5.2 percent).
The average sale price of all residential properties sold in November increased 13 percent to $637,336 compared to the same month last year, while detached homes sold for an average price of $753,641 an increase of 14.4 percent. During this same period, the average sale price for an apartment-style condominium was $400,882 for an increase of 12 percent. Townhomes and semis sold for an average of $482,901 (up 8.6 percent) and $562,988 (up 30.4 percent) respectively.
The median price of all residential properties sold in November increased 16.5 percent to $600,000 and the median price of a detached home during the same period increased 15 percent to $685,000.
“Prices continued to climb in November as buyers across all price points compete for listings as soon as they come on the market,” said Pohl. “The number of available properties going up for sale simply can’t keep up to the number of people wanting to purchase them.”
There were 584 new listings added to the MLS® System in KW and area last month, an increase of 34.8 percent compared to November of last year, and 13 percent more than the previous ten-year average for November.
The number of Months of Supply (also known as absorption rate) continues to be very low at just 1 month for the month of November. The previous ten-year average supply of homes for November was 3 months, and in the past 5 years, the average supply for November was 1.8 months.
KWAR’s president says the sales-price-to-list-price ratio for all residential properties sold in November was 107.9 percent. “The only other time I’ve seen the sale to list ratio this high was in May of 2017 when it hit 108.6 percent,” says Pohl. For comparison, in 2019, the monthly close price to list price ratio was at or near 100 percent from January through to December. Since August it has been over 105 percent.