December Sales: Down Market

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The slide in the Westmount real estate market turned into freefall during the last few months, as the market has now dropped some eight percent since September. Though there is often a downturn at the end of the year, and this resembles the fall of late 2013, the prospects for a recovery in the local real estate market, as the stock market tumbles and the Quebec economy struggles, appear dim.

Seven sales, all with prices between $1,040,000 and $1,685,000, were posted by local agents in December, a slight increase in volume from November but with an average markdown of one percent, the first average markdown since December last year and only the second such markdown since February 2014. It is perhaps interesting that December last year was also the last month which showed no sales below $1 million, but in fact that month featured three sales over $2 million and an average price of $1,827,803, while this time the average was $1,355,714. Markups last month ranged from -12 to +13 percent; the latter was one of the lowest top-of-ranges since the new valuation roll came into effect in 2014. Volume actually improved by one sale over November, and in fact the seven sales are one more than in December last year and three more than in December 2013. Only two of this December’s sales followed exposure time of less than 100 days; in fact, the median listing time was 157 days and the longest was 298.

For the year 2015, total volume was 148 sales of one- and two-family dwellings, exactly the same as in 2014, and the average markup was 7 percent, up slightly from only 1 percent in 2014. The raw average price was $1,522,671 compared to $1,527,906 in the previous year, so it is clear there was relatively little movement of the overall market between the two years.

One more condominium sold in December, bringing the total for the last quarter to six, with an average markdown of 1 percent and a year’s average markup of 6 percent, about the same as for one- and two-family dwellings. This does not include two new apartments sold in the last quarter for which valuations have yet to be established, both at 175 Metcalfe Ave. corner Hillside.

Only two new sales of houses in adjacent-Westmount appeared on the December sales list, one in eastern Notre Dame de Grâce and the other in the “Golden Square Mile;” house prices last year were generally higher than in 2014, except for the sector of Montreal just east of Westmount, but lower among condominiums.

Here’s hoping the spring brings new buyers to Westmount. Many sellers have taken their houses off the market for now; the number of active listings in Westmount dropped dramatically from 135 in mid-December to 117 last week, almost all in the $1 million to $2 million range. One more rental was posted in December, bringing the total for 2015 to 29 house rentals, with 19 still available.

Posted by andy Posted in: Monthly Analysis No Comments » December 2015