3 Factors Impacting Ottawa’s Unprecedented Real Estate Market

The Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB) has released important key statistics for April 2021. Despite the lockdown and the uncertainty of the economy, the real estate market has remained strong. Here’s a summary of three important findings from OREB’s release:

1. Average sale prices continue to rise. Ottawa has a hot market, with an average sale price of $743,204 for a residential-class property. This is a 42% increase from last year. For condominium-class properties, the average sale price rose to $427,145, which is 30% higher than the previous year. It is definitely a good time to be a seller!

2. Inventory levels remain low, but rose slightly in April. The unprecedented increase in home prices can be attributed to a lack of supply, which will continue to cause problems for buyers until inventory levels rise back up. However, in April there was a slight turnaround; inventory was 19% higher than the 5-year average and 400 more units were listed than there were in March. With more homeowners looking to take advantage of the hot market, perhaps we will see this trend of increasing inventory continue, especially once Ontario’s stay at home order is lifted.

3. Low interest rates continue to impact demand. While the direction of the market is hard to predict, low interest rates will continue to encourage buyers to enter the fray. Record low rates have been driving consumer behaviour, and with no rate hikes expected on the horizon, we are likely to continue seeing high demand from buyers looking to get into the market.

Overall, the Ottawa real estate market has been thriving, and there has never been a better time to sell. If you are interested in seeing how you might benefit from the current market as a seller, Frank and I would be happy to help you understand the value of your property in today’s market. Just give us a call.