Collingwood / Georgian Triangle Market View - June 2009

Real estate sales activity across the Georgian Triangle trading area continued at an aggressive pace throughout the month of June 2009. As the thermostat began to rise, so too did the number of buyers engaging in real estate transactions last month. The positive shift in the real estate market sales in June continues the trend witnessed over the past couple of months. As has been reported in previous reports, list prices that reflect the reality of today’s market (better value per dollar), a continuation of low, highly affordable interest rates, and pent up buyer demand have created a relatively balanced market in Collingwood and the surrounding areas.

Demand for both recreational and full-time resident properties increased last month. The MLS statistics report released by the Georgian Triangle Real Estate Board indicates that there were 16% more sales recorded during the month of June 2009 compared to the same period in 2008. There were 206 sales reported in June 2009 compared with 177 in June 2008.

While sales in June reflected the overall positive trend of the last few months, sales on a year-to-date basis continued to reflect the lack of sales experienced at the start of 2009. Year-to-date sales at the end of June were 19% behind sale levels reported during the same six months in 2008 falling from 949 to 770. Recreational property sales have slowly gained momentum over the spring. This has been primarily fuelled by generation X buyers who are now in a position to acquire the second property that until recently has been unattainable. Increased buying power and lower property prices are two of the key factors to this trend.

Total sales dollar volume for the month of June 2009 was 16% greater then June 2008 increasing from $43,715,345 to $50,660,918. On a year-to-date basis, sales dollar volume fell 23% from $247,272,996 for the first two quarters of 2008 to $190,686,815 for the same time period in 2009.

The supply of properties for sale across the Georgian Triangle’s trading areas fell 11% during the month of June 2009 compared with June 2008. 519 new listings were introduced to the board’s MLS system last month compared to 586 new listings during the month of June 2008. There were 5% fewer properties listed on the board’s MLS system year-to-date at the end of June 2009 compared to the number listed at the end of June 2008.

As per the board’s residential report, the average sale price reported for single family properties during the month of June 2009 was $264,753 compared with $268,648 in June 2008 – a moderate 1.4% difference. On a year-to-date basis, the average sale price at the end of the first six months of 2009 fell 3% from $282,620 to $273,941 compared with the first six months last year. The most expensive area in which to buy a property in June 2009 was in the Town of the Blue Mountains where the average sale price was $382,388. The least expensive area in which to buy a property across the Georgian Triangle area in June 2009 was in the Tiny Township where the average sale price was $190,000.

At the time that this report is being prepared, we are well into the middle of July. While real estate sales typically tend to soften during the summer, this does not seem to be the case this year. As was mentioned at the beginning of this report, pent up demand, prices that reflect better value relative to the prices we have seen over the past couple of years and historically low interest rates are driving what was a strong spring real estate market well into the summer.

Prepared by: Justine Deluce, Vice President, Operations
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