The First Quarter Residential Resale Home Market Ended Strong

The 2011 first quarter sales market activity continued to be strong. Saskatoon REALTORS® assisting 346 home buyers with the purchase of their dream home. This number was down 4% from March 2010 when 359 homes were sold. Year to Date unit sales numbers stand at 821 that number up 6% from 2010 when the total stood at 772. The $300,000 to $350,000 price range continues to be the most active. The average number of days to sell in the month of January was 36 days. The average residential selling price in March was $294,025.00 this number up 4% from March 2010 when the average selling price was $282,393.00. The average residential price is derived by taking the month’s dollar volume of homes sold and dividing that number by the unit sales number. The percentage of change should not be used unilaterally as prices vary from area to area. Consumers wishing an accurate estimate of value for their home should contact a REALTOR® member to do a comparative market analysis. REALTORS® listed 694 homes in March that number down 6% from March 2010 when 739 properties were listed for sale. Year to date 1769 homes have been listed for sale that number up 11% when the 2010 first quarter ended with 1,599 being placed on the market. Home buyers had 1219 homes to select from at the end of March. In areas surrounding Saskatoon sales activity was very active with 91 homes selling that number down 6% from March 2010 when 96 homes were sold. REALTORS® listed 274 properties in these areas in the month of March. That number is up 9% from March 2010 when 300 properties were placed on the market for sale. Year to date 664 properties have been listed for sale up 9% from the 2010 year to date number of 607. The average number of days to sell in areas around Saskatoon during the month of March was 66 days. The new home market remains strong with steady city lot sales taking place. Interest rates remain unchanged being favorable to purchase that next home. Job creation in the Saskatoon area remains steady. The forecast for the next quarter of 2011 is for listing and sales numbers to continue to balance and for prices level or move up slightly due to demand.  Harry H. Janzen, CAE Executive Officer Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® hjanzen@srar.ca                      343-3440