Here's how the market performed in 2018 according to the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
The real estate market in 2018 was quite a ride. It began relatively normal, but then the abundance of listings that many anticipated never really became abundant at all. We were in a sellers market for most of the year. The ride we experienced in the past year came with emotional highs and lows. Happy and thrilled sellers benefited from multiple offers and bidding wars, but then on the flip side, disgruntled buyers who kept losing out many opportunities.
Overall we ended up with positive increases, as you will see in the infographic below, followed by a quote from the president of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
“For the last decade, we have experienced steady growth in our real estate market from volume to prices; however, the past two years have jumped significantly in activity with a 12.6% increase in unit sales from 2016. Ottawa, and its surrounding area, has excellent employment numbers and has proven to be one of the most affordable larger cities in the country,” proclaims Ralph Shaw, Ottawa Real Estate Board’s 2018 President.
“What has come to a head in 2018 is the overall shortage of inventory which is extreme in certain pockets of the city. While this has caused unit sales to slide in the residential market, it has fueled the condominium market which has recovered and carried us through much of 2018. We have been predicting this will bode well for new construction in delayed high-rise projects,” he adds.
“Another significant factor affecting the market in 2018, and first-time home buyers in particular, is the mortgage stress test – an attempt by the federal government to cool two major markets in the country. It has also unfortunately made move-up buyers less likely to take that step and free up entry-level options, which is an important part of the resale market,” Shaw points out.
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