Also unprecedented– especially during the first half of
2015, although precise numbers are not available—was
the number of multiple offers and over-price offers that
sellerswere getting (and happily accepting).
110
|
WINTER
2016
Alsounprecedented–especiallyduring the firsthalfof2015,although
precisenumbers arenot available—was thenumber ofmultipleoffers
andover-priceoffers that sellersweregetting (andhappilyaccepting).
This was particularly prevalent in the$250,000 to$400,000price
rangewhere demand seemed tobe the strongest. This phenomena is
morecommonly found inhyperactivemarkets like theGreater Toronto
area. However, with the strong demand for listings coupledwith the
15% reduction in inventory creatingahot sellers’market,multipleand
over-price offers alsobecame a relatively common scenario here the
SouthernGeorgianBay region.
Aswell, I can tell you thatmore thana fewREALTORS
®
I have spoken
with have tales to tell about properties — some utterly spectacular, but
deemed tobeover-priced— that were literallyon themarket for years
beforebeingsnappedupat justunderor justover the listingpriceamidst
thewhirlwindof real estateactivity
thatwas2015.Andmanyof these
same REALTORS
®
will also be
more than happy to tell you that
throughout the year they accumu-
lateda list of qualified,motivated—
and sometimes frustrated—buyers
whowanted tobuy,whomissedone
ormoreopportunities, andwho still
want tobuybutcannot find theprop-
erty theyare looking for because it
isnot currentlyon themarket.
This last point brings us to themost
uniqueand unprecedentedaspect
of the2015SouthernGeorgianBay real estatemarket. If you lookat
2015’smonthlyunit sales increasesover2014, theygenerallydeclined
fromMarch’send-over-end increaseof46% toDecember’s increaseof
18%. This indicatesagraduallyslowingmarket.Now,usuallyaslowing
market signifiesadecrease indemand for listingsdue toanover-supply,
partlyonaccount of the listings becomingover-priced. However, such
was not thecase in2015given that therewere782–or15.2%– less
homeson themarket than in2014!
So if2015’sgradual sales slowdownwasnot due toanover-supplyof
homes on themarket andover-pricing, what was it due to?According
toall of my REALTOR
®
colleagues I have spokenwith, it was unques-
tionablydue toa shortageof homeson themarket: inotherwords,a to-
tally, topsy-turvymarket condition— kindof like the real estatemarket
equivalentofa thermo-inversion.All theREALTORS
®
Ihavespokenwith
say that,opposite to thenorm, if therehadbeenmore listingson themar-
ket, therewouldhavebeenmore sales.Now that isa sellers’market!
Sowhat’s the takeaway?
Well, formany long-time,marketwatchers the2015marketwasnotonly
uniqueandextraordinarilyactive, but alsomore thana littlepuzzling in
that: saleswereway up throughout the year, sobuyersweredefinitely
buying;priceswereupnicely; thedemand fornew listingswashigher than
high; therewere lots ofmultipleandover-priceoffers; it was awhite-hot
sellers’market,butwith lesscompe-
titionbetweensellers;andyet... far
fewer people were putting their
homesup for sale(?)
Thesepointsseem toaddup to two
things which are essentially the
same thing: that more and more
peoplewant to live in this incredi-
blybeautiful area, and thoseof us
who are fortunate enough to live
here are generally very happy
whereweare.
Sowhat’son tap for2016?
Difficult toknow, givenall themacroandmicroeconomic factors. Still it
seemssafe tosay thatwhatwesaw in2015—andalso2014and2013,
whichwerebanner sales years— ispart of abroaderdemographic that
isbringingmoreandmorepeople to thearea, aswell asdrivingagreat
deal of newhome construction. And so, notwithstandingadownturn in
theeconomy, significantly rising interest ratesorotherunforeseen factors,
theonly issue thatcouldslowdownhomesalesseems tobea lackof listing
inventory tomeet thegrowingdemand.
Thebottom line:all thingsbeingequal,2015wasa fabulousyear for re-
gional realestateandwecanprobablyexpectmoreof thesame thisyear.
If so, thatmeans that2016will continue tobeagreat time tobeahome
seller—andalsoahomebuyer— in theSouthernGeorgianBayarea.
|E|
These points seem to add up to two things
which are essentially the same thing:
that more andmore peoplewant to live in
this incredibly beautiful area, and those of
uswho are fortunate enough to live here
are generally very happywherewe are.
ESCARPMENT
®
real estate
