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EDMONTON — Prices for single-family homes in the Edmonton region dropped while condo prices rallied in December, according to figures released today by the Realtors Association of Edmonton.& r+ |) H4 \/ J1 U, Y) @" v
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“That’s a 180-degree twist from what we saw in the month of November,” said outgoing association president Marc Perras.- ~* z" A* ?" _
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The average price for a single family home dropped by three per cent to $351,870 after remaining flat for two months. That’s $30,000 less than the average price of a single family dwelling at the start of 2008.9 C: R" n* \/ h! E
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Condominium prices — which fell more than eight per cent in the previous two months — edged up 1.2 per cent over November.- V( g/ X9 ?6 A" X# N
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Over the year, condo prices dropped 7.5 per cent from $253,270 to $234,286.6 v: @1 J: j1 y$ ]3 O. \: b2 Q
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At the end of December, there were 6,316 homes in inventory. The sales to listing ratio was 46 per cent and average days on market was 65, up two from November.3 I o. p5 @+ N6 Q# q5 D. V
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Residential sales plunged by 29.1 per cent in December to 608. Perras blamed cold weather and global economic uncertainty.
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; P6 b5 S# G: f& [“Who wants to tour homes when both your toes and your portfolio are frozen?” Perras said.
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Neither Perras, nor incoming president Charlie Ponde would release a resale market forecast for 2009 until a news conference scheduled for Thursday.! b; I4 n. \6 H2 T# X
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But one real estate company predicted Tuesday that after months of sluggish sales and slipping prices, Edmonton’s housing will return to “a normal state” in 2009.
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The year will bring stable average house prices and gradually increasing sales, according to the Royal LePage 2009 Market Survey Forecast. r. M( F* [: @
9 k# F/ j( E9 I, k _. h“The combination of healthy employment levels, historically low interest rates and good affordability — something the city has not seen in a while — will all bolster Edmonton’s housing resale market in 2009,” said the survey.
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The report predicts the average local house price to hold steady at $333,000 this year. The number of homes sold is expected to increase by three per cent to 17,825 units, it said. Z- Q- W* s% e9 u
The company added that a glut of homes that burdened the market shrank in 2008 and will get smaller in 2009, putting Edmonton in a balanced market.8 I8 A, ^9 ^1 f3 [; i7 o: Q
5 E$ K( x! t, e* w& T“Nationally, Canadian average house prices are forecast to dip by three per cent from last year to $295,000, while transactions are projected to fall to 416,000 (–3.5 per cent) unit sales in 2009,” the report said.
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5 K9 z' {1 q" E/ a- j: B, E9 lMeanwhile, the Realtors Association of Edmonton will release a recap of the housing market this morning and a forecast of 2009 on Thursday. |
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