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LSTAR’s News Release for February 2023
Local Home Prices See Modest Growth
In February 2023, the MLS® System of the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS® (LSTAR) recorded only 436 residential transactions, thus marking the lowest number of February home sales seen by LSTAR since 1995.
Despite the sluggish sales, 761 new listings entered the market during the same time frame, bringing the number of active listings to 1,320 by month-end. The overall sales-to-new listings ratio for the entire jurisdiction of LSTAR was 57.3%.
Compared to February 2022, both the overall average home price and the composite MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) Benchmark Price were significantly lower, down 24.2% and 25.1%, respectively. Despite this, both metrics saw a modest month-over-month growth. LSTAR’s overall average home price was $621,912 last month, while the composite MLS® HPI Benchmark Price came in at $583,500.
“With the Bank of Canada signalling that interest rates may have peaked and the consumer confidence index sitting at its highest level since September, I am feeling optimistic about the local housing market. The frantic bidding wars of the past seem to be now in our rearview mirror. And home buyers are getting more and more comfortable with taking on variable-rate mortgages, feeling encouraged by this much calmer environment. In these conditions, the spring market could surprise us,” said 2023 LSTAR President Adam Miller.
To further understand the market, the following table illustrates February’s average home prices in LSTAR’s main regions compared to the benchmark prices for those same areas.
| Area | February 2023 MLS® HPI Benchmark Price | February 2023 Average Price |
|---|---|---|
| Central Elgin | $581,600 | $772,488 |
| London East | $473,500 | $545,823 |
| London North | $701,900 | $716,079 |
| London South | $579,700 | $591,098 |
| Middlesex Centre | $833,600 | $901,034 |
| St. Thomas | $499,100 | $552,500 |
| Strathroy-Caradoc | $713,500 | $672,013 |
| LSTAR | $583,500 | $621,912 |
“Out of all house types, single-family homes were the ones that drove the month-over-month increases we noticed in the average and benchmark prices. Last month, the average price of a single-family home was $673,226 in our area, 25.2% lower than in February 2022, but also 5.6% higher than in January 2023. In addition, its MLS® HPI benchmark price was 4% higher than in the previous month,” Miller observed.
Providing a comprehensive overview of the benchmark prices for all housing types in LSTAR jurisdiction, the following table presents the figures for February 2023. This data allows for a direct comparison with the benchmark prices from the preceding years of 2022 and 2020.
| BENCHMARK TYPE | FEBRUARY 2023 | CHANGE OVER FEBRUARY 2022 | CHANGE OVER FEBRUARY 2020 |
| LSTAR Composite | $583,500 | ↓25.1% | ↑44.0% |
| LSTAR Single-Family | $628,300 | ↓25.0% | ↑46.4% |
| LSTAR One Storey | $558,400 | ↓25.2% | ↑43.0% |
| LSTAR Two Storey | $676,300 | ↓24.8% | ↑48.4% |
| LSTAR Townhouse | $489,400 | ↓25.7% | ↑43.3% |
| LSTAR Apartment | $353,800 | ↓26.1% | ↑18.2% |
