October 15, 2021

September Sales updates

LSTAR’s News Release for September 2021

LSTAR Home Sales on Track for a Record Year

In September 2021, the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS® (LSTAR) experienced another solid month, with 864 residential transactions recorded via its MLS® system. “This value, which represents the second-highest number of homes sold in the month of September in LSTAR’s jurisdiction since 1978, puts us on track for a record year. In the first nine months of this year, 8,756 homes traded hands in our area, which is an unprecedented total for our September year-to-date figures,” said 2021 LSTAR President Jack Lane.

1,057 new listings came on the local market last month, on par with the values seen in the pre-pandemic years. However, at the end of the month, there were only 628 active listings left – the lowest amount of active listings ever seen by LSTAR in September. “These figures show clearly that houses in our area are in very short supply. The shortage is also demonstrated by the very low number of months of inventory – 0.6, which indicates that, at the current sales pace, it would take only a  bit over two weeks to liquidate the entire existing housing inventory of LSTAR,” explained Lane.

Both benchmark and average sales prices continued to rise last month. In September, the overall average home price for LSTAR was $690,861, while the LSTAR composite MLS® HPI benchmark price sat at $596,400.

The following table shows how September’s average sales prices compare to the benchmark prices. The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) benchmark price reflects the value of a “typical home” from a specific area as perceived by local home buyers based on various housing attributes. The average sales price is calculated by adding the sale prices for all the homes sold and dividing that total by the number of transactions. Since monthly averages may be skewed by the type of houses sold in that timeframe, the HPI benchmark price is a more accurate way to gauge price trends.

Area September 2021 MLS® HPI Benchmark Price September 2021 Average Price
Central Elgin $620,600 $613,571
London East $516,300 $505,641
London North $711,400 $752,925
London South $588,100 $658,973
Middlesex Centre $876,900 $921,217
St. Thomas $504,700 $526,599
Strathroy-Caradoc $698,100 $638,078
LSTAR $596,400 $690,861

“Aside from prices, when analyzing the market activity in LSTAR’s five main regions, we are also looking at the median number of days on market recorded in each region. This number reveals how many days it usually takes to sell a home in a certain area. Except for Elgin, this number was between 7 and 8 days,” Lane added.

The single-family home remains on top of the local buyers’ preferences, with 648 sales in September. “Yet, it is worth mentioning that, so far, both condo townhouses and apartments had their best year ever, with 1,087 and 812 units respectively exchanging hands year-to-date,” Lane noted.

The table below shows the September benchmark prices for all housing types in LSTAR’s jurisdiction and how they stack up against the values from a year ago.

MLS® Home Price Index Benchmark Prices
Benchmark Type September 2021 Change over September 2020
LSTAR Composite $596,400 ↑ 31.7%
LSTAR Single-Family $644,900 ↑ 33.6%
LSTAR One Storey $600,200 ↑ 34.6%
LSTAR Two Storey $689,500 ↑ 33%
LSTAR Townhouse $479,600 ↑ 32%
LSTAR Apartment $336,200 ↑15.5 %

“Despite all the surges we witnessed in the HPI benchmark prices and average sales prices, homes in LSTAR’s jurisdiction remain relatively affordable when compared to houses from some other major Ontario and  Canadian centres,” Lane emphasized.

The following chart is based on data taken from the CREA National Price Map for August 2021.

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Uncategorized May 4, 2021

London & St Thomas April Market

LSTAR’s News Release for April 2021

Home Sales Remain Strong in April

The London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS® (LSTAR) announced 1,231 homes exchanged hands last month, the highest number of home sales recorded via the MLS® system for the month of April since the Association began tracking data in 1978.

“We are encouraged by the strong sales numbers, as the spring market ramps up,” said LSTAR 2021 President Jack Lane. “Year-to-date sales are also performing ahead of 2020. At the end of April, there have been 3,918 sales, up more than 57% over the same period last year.”

LSTAR’s regions, like many others across the province, are experiencing some of the lowest inventory levels seen in the past 10 years. Combined with a high demand, these dynamics have contributed to a very robust marketplace, with numerous situations of multiple offers and properties being sold for considerably more than their listing prices.

“It’s important for the public to understand that every transaction is different, based on housing type, housing features, geographical location and many other factors,” Lane said. “Each transaction is unique and does not necessarily represent activity across the entire marketplace.”

The following table shows last month’s MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) benchmark prices by area and how they compare to the average sales prices. The HPI benchmark price reflects the value of a “typical home” as assigned by buyers in a certain area based on various housing attributes, while the average sales price is calculated by adding all the sale prices for homes sold and dividing that total by the number of homes sold. Since averages may be affected by the monthly changes in the mix of sales activity, the HPI benchmark price is a more accurate way to gauge price trends over time.

Area April 2021 MLS® HPI Benchmark Price April 2021 Average Price
Elgin $595,200 $641,366
London East $505,700 $508,158
London North $696,700 $755,102
London South $570,200 $650,472
Middlesex $859,700 $881,011
St. Thomas $490,900 $541,255
Strathroy $691,700 $633,280
LSTAR $583,400 $643,835

“The pandemic has added another layer to managing the home selling and buying process,” Lane said. “We understand the challenges many potential home buyers are going through right now. A local REALTOR® is always going to be your best resource to help you navigate through this marketplace.”

The single-family home maintains its place as the most popular housing type sold, with 913 sales in April. The table below shows the April benchmark prices for all housing types and how they stack up against the values from a year ago.

MLS® Home Price Index Benchmark Prices
Benchmark Type April 2021 Change over April 2020
LSTAR Composite $583,400 ↑ 42%
LSTAR Single-Family $640,300 ↑ 47.3%
LSTAR One Storey $586,300 ↑ 46.9%
LSTAR Two Storey $701,600 ↑ 47.5%
LSTAR Townhouse $444,500 ↑ 32.1%
LSTAR Apartment $295,400 ↑ 6.9%

Despite increases to the HPI benchmark price and average sales price, homes in LSTAR’s jurisdiction continue to remain relatively affordable when compared to houses from some other major Ontario and Canadian centres. The following table is based on data taken from the CREA National Price Map for March 2021.

HPI Benchmark Home Prices Across Canada - March 2021