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Slower May after record-setting
April: could it be the HST?
Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,694
residential properties in May through the Board’s Multiple
Listing Service® system compared with 1,967 in May 2009, a
decrease of 13.9 per cent.
“Many of the sales that would normally have occurred in May
were pulled back to April, due to buyers trying to avoid the
May 1st transitional implementation date for the HST, as
well as new mortgage regulations that came into effect April
19,” said Board President Pierre de Varennes. “Buyers knew
they would be paying eight per cent more for all of the
service costs associated with a real estate transaction if
their closing date was after July 1, and that it might be
more difficult to qualify for financing, so they moved
quickly to avoid either situation. In addition, by
comparison May 2009 was a record-breaking month as the
floodgates opened on pent-up demand following the brief
downturn in the market,” he added.
The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in May in the Ottawa area was $333,408, an increase of 6.9 per cent over May 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $246,116, an increase of 6.4 per cent over May 2009. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $356,387, an increase of 8.3 per cent over May 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
The Ottawa Real Estate Board is an industry association of
2,590 sales representatives and brokers in the Ottawa area.
Members of the Board are also members of the Canadian Real
Estate Association and thus are entitled to use the term
REALTOR�. The MLS� system is a member based service, paid
for by the REALTOR� members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
The MLS� mark symbolizes the cooperation among REALTORS� to
effect the purchase and sale of real estate through real
estate services provided by REALTORS�. MLS� commercial and
residential listings are available for viewing on the Board�s internet site at www.OttawaRealEstate.org and on the
national websites of The Canadian Real Estate Association at
www.REALTOR.ca and www.ICX.ca. Information about listings
and open houses is also available in the Board�s weekly
newspaper, Ottawa Real Estate Guide, available free at 700
locations across the Ottawa area and now online at
www.OttawaRealEstateGuide.ca.
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