Hello Spring 2024 | How are we doing out there?

THE MARKET IS OFFICIALLY NUTS.

Mostly, it’s unpredictable, and can’t be trusted. Don’t worry, you can still trust your local REALTOR®… they are doing the best they can, based on the most recent available data we have. However, the data seems to be going UP AND DOWN lately, mere days between sales. It’s sometimes hard to predict what the next house is going to go for.

After a decade in the business and experience through turbulent markets: long and short days on market, here is what I can definitively say in this convoluted Spring Market in North Bay, Ontario:

• Our current average price for the past month (March 2024) for residential property is $478,872 (according to CREA stats MLS reporting), which is down 2.19% from March 2023, and down from the peak pricing of 2022 (COVID MARKET: something by the way that no one wants to go back to… not even us Realtors® even though it was the big bucks…
• We are still in an inflated market
• We are still (for the most part) in a Seller’s Market, although Southern Ontarians like to argue with us about that…
• Quality family homes that hit most of the Buyers (3+ beds, 2+baths, garage or carport, good neighbourhood) are getting multiple offers if they are priced under 500K
• First time buyer homes are getting multiple offers
• Price and neighbourhood are everything to people right now
• Interest rates are still high for most Buyers (limiting affordability), even though they have stopped rising
• Some residential homes even though they aren’t looking the best in modern updates, if they have the capability for an in-law suite, a secondary dwelling/ income helper, they are getting more showings and more offers and potentially more money…
• It’s always about supply and demand, and we still have relatively LOW supply, and increased demand, which is not letting up.
• Who do we currently have in the marketplace: half are local Buyers, and half are out-of-towners coming into NB (many of them investors)

So what do I make out of all of this?

Although in 2022 the market was heightened: peak demand and record low inventory, at least it was predictable. We could predict roughly how many offers every listing would get based on the past few comparable sales. We could predict how much traffic would come through a home. We could predict listing strategy and it would typically work well for the Seller. We could also get our Buyers equipped with ammunition and strategize for the best possible offer based on comparable sales, and market trend.

Right now… there’s no predictability. It’s a bit all over the place. One house going for 100K over with 10 offers, the next a week later getting 1 offer with a heavy amount of showings and traffic. Then the next week, 10 showings on a similar home, and 4 offers.

I don’t know what to make of it. What I do feel is the frustration from most Buyers right now. Almost like they are living through Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from their first go round during the Pandemic and losing time after time on offer date. So they come back to the table in 2024 when the rates seemed to have stabilized, they have a few more dollars saved into their account, they are getting so close to finally reaching a milestone, and purchasing their first home… and then BAM, market starts to heat up again, and competition is back to fierce.

I feel you!

But don’t fret, it will happen. We are in a better place than we were with competition in 2022. Value has still held up, which is great for our community, that we haven’t plummeted! It means there is good consumer confidence in the Nipissing region.

Stay tuned for more thoughts on stats and market movement.