St. John’s Metro Real Estate Market Update for May 2023.
I will be focusing my data on St. John’s Metro. This includes St. John’s, CBS, Mount Pearl, Paradise and Eastern Extension Areas. I prepared these Statistics from data available on June 2nd, from NLAR’s MLS System. And as always, I am not an economist but I will provide my insights as a realtor in this update.
Market Overview
Month's of Supply
From a high level perspective, there were 7 months of supply available in St. John’s Metro in May. Which is the same statistic that we saw in the previous month. And although this is technically a buyers market, if you are a buyer right now I’m sure you know that there are not a lot of options available and it’s feeling a lot more like a sellers market.
Since months of supply is calculated based on how many months it would take for all of the homes currently listed to sell, given the average sales volume. And since our sales volume in St. John’s metro is low, I will get more into that in just a minute, it’s making it look, at least on paper, that we have 7 months of supply.
Average Sale Price
The average sale price for a residential home in St. John’s Metro is $332,162.
This number is very similar to what we saw last month and last year. I want to take a second to stress to you that real estate is local. If you see a news article about home prices in Canada, in Newfoundland we may not be seeing the same thing happening. Even within St. John’s Metro, there are particular areas and subdivisions that behave differently. That is why it is important to get accurate, local information from a trusted source.
Active Listings
There were 1,493 active listings available in May and this is up 200 versus the previous month. The spring market kicked in a bit late and it may have to do with the horrible weather we have had so far this year.
Median Sale Price
There were 535 new residential listings in May. This number has been trending up month over month but we are still down compared to last year. And the 10 year average for new listings for May is 656. So we are not seeing the same level of new home coming on the market that we are used to seeing for St. John’s Metro.
Sold Listings
Now you might be wondering how long it’s taking properties to sell? On average in May a Single Family Homes in St. John’s Metro was taking 51 days to sell.
Just for comparison, the lowest that we saw last year where the market felt like it was moving very quickly was 39 days on market. However, if you are a buyer, I still wouldn’t wait too long to put an offer in on a home. A nice home, in a desirable neighborhood, that is priced right is selling quickly.
List to Sale Price Ratio
The average list to sale price ratio was 99.3% in April. That simply means that properties were selling for 99.3% of list price. So just under asking. That’s up from last month and last year.
Now when you’re looking at this stat, you’ve got to keep in mind that it has a lot to do with the strategy a seller uses when they’re listing their property. This indicates that most seller’s are listing their homes very close to market price, not underpricing their house to entice bidding wars or overpricing to leave room to come down in negotiations.
Interest Rate Update
If you’re thinking about buying real estate in the near future, the mortgage rate at the end of May for a 5 year fixed is 4.94%. Whether you’re getting financing through a bank or an alternative lender I encourage you to meet with them early in the home buying process in order to secure the best rates possible.
(Interest Rates provided by Darryl Lane at East Coast Mortgage Brokers)
My Market Trends Insights
- So in summary, when you look at the May market trends, the number of homes coming on the market and available to purchase is down, so if you are thinking about selling, now may be a good time to do so, as competition is low.
- And on that note, we are seeing homes going into multiple offers, but keep in mind the average person is not overpaying for a property.
- As well, we are seeing that homes are selling more quickly. So buyers, if you see something you like, know that there are probably a lot of people looking at that same listing. It is more important than ever to work with someone to help you write compelling offers.
- And finally, the average sale price is relatively stable. But we can’t forget, what is happening in Torbay might be different than what’s happening in Mount Pearl, there are different micro markets everywhere.
So how does this all impact you?
The bottom line is that whether you’re buying, selling or investing, your situation is unique and a general market update should be taken with a grain of salt.
If you want a market analysis for your home or you’re thinking of buying and want to know where hidden opportunities may lie, you can request a free no-obligation market analysis of your home or book a call with me to have a conversation about your options.
And if you liked this blog post...
Be sure to check out my other real estate blog posts! Like this one about activities for special needs children in St. John’s.
