OTTAWA, April 4, 2014 – Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,126 residential properties in March through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® system, compared with 1,160 in March 2013, a decrease of 2.9 per cent. “Sales picked up month over month, with 256 more properties switching hands in March than in February,” says Randy Oickle, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “That’s a 29.7 per cent increase, which is to be expected of a spring market.” March’s sales included 230 in the condominium property class, and 896 in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.), which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
“A total of 2,776 properties were listed in March, indicating that sellers were getting ready the busy spring market,” explains Oickle. “The average days on market stood at 49 for the month of March, lower than the average of 61 days in January and February, indicating that properties are starting to move faster as we enter the second quarter of 2014.” The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in March in the Ottawa area was $359,051, an increase of 0.3 per cent over March 2013. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $251,381, a decrease of 2.1 per cent over March 2013. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $386,690, an increase of 0.2 per cent over March 2013. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold. “It’s a great time to buy or sell real estate,” says Oickle. “
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