With 321 homes on the market in St. Albert, sellers are adding a few extras these days like geraniums on the porch and perhaps a dab of paint here and there in order to move their property and get a “sold” sign on the front lawn.
“St. Albert is stable and hasn’t changed much since early 2009 so sellers are having to be realistic and several are making price adjustments to get them close to what will sell,” said James Mabey, broker/owner for Sutton Nor-Vista.
In June the average selling price was $427,193 but of the 80 homes that sold, two were priced at more than $1 million. The two big houses could add slightly to the average price of all sales.
“Only three per cent of sales are for the higher-end homes so as soon as you have even one high-end home sold, it skews the numbers,” said Royal LePage manager Shirley Williams.
Still average home selling prices have stayed much the same for several months and are generally in the mid-$400,000 range. That number is identical to last year when the average was $420,290. In 2009 the average was $430,878.
“It’s always supply and demand and some homeowners are reducing prices if their homes aren’t selling,” said Williams.
The average number of days on the market for the month of June was 53.
Both realtors stopped short of forecasting a drastic drop in prices, but instead suggested that the status quo will remain in St. Albert for some time.
“We have a robust economy and though the inventory is creeping up and there is no urgency in the market, houses are selling,” said Mabey.
“We’re expecting huge differences one way or the other in the market because interest rates are not expected to move,” agreed Richard Goatcher, housing analyst for Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation.
