The MLS® statistics from the Georgian Triangle Real Estate Board for the first eight months of 2007 are in and sales volumes continue to exceed 2006 levels as expected. After a slower than normal start to the year from January to March, sales activity climbed steadily through the spring and summer with the number of unit sales now up more than 13% over last year with the total dollar volume values up more than 17% overall.
While the number of expired listings (properties that did not sell during their listing period) are up by about 10%, the total number of properties listed for sale so far this year is almost equal to 2006. A key indicator to watch is the sales to listing ratio; that is the number of properties sold versus the number listed. A ratio below 40% is considered a buyer's market, over 50% is considered to be a seller's market and between 40-50% a balanced market. So far in 2007, the ratio has been climbing each month and currently sits at 45%, up from 39.3% in June, and ahead of last year at this time when it was 40%. It is worth noting that the ratio for the month of August alone was 67%. Strongest performance year-to-date continues to be in the Meaford market where the YTD ratio is at 56% while the lowest performance has been in the town of the Blue Mountains at just 32%. This is a reflection of the very different markets and average price points of those two communities.
The average sale prices of residential properties are up in most individual communities and currently, the average residential sale price for the Georgian Triangle area as a whole is sitting at about $284,797 which is considerably higher than a year ago by about 11% when the average sale price was $256,585. The highest average sale price continues to be in the Town of the Blue Mountains at $452,959 and for the first time that I can recall, the lowest average price is in Collingwood at $232,153.00. The average sale prices in Collingwood, Meaford and Wasaga Beach are comparable at between $232,000 to $248,000.00.
The most active price band in all areas continues to be in properties valued between $260,000 to $350,000 and, high end sales remain very strong. There were another two sales last month over the one million dollar mark bringing the total so far in 2007 to 16 versus 9 at this point last year. Sales priced between $260,000 to $500,000 are up a significant 31% and sales from $500,000 to one million are up 34%. There are currently a total of 1798 active listings in the Georgian Triangle Multiple Listings®. These numbers should be considered in relation to all of 2006 and suggest to me that market conditions are relatively balanced and average sale prices continue to climb.
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