Nam Kular

The real estate market in Edmonton has not been particularly encouraging in recent months and if the views of experts in the sector are anything to follow, things might not get better in the nearest future.

According to a recent Royal LePage Noralta survey, real estate prices in Edmonton are not following the same trend as national home prices, with a 1.4 percent drop in prices of homes in Edmonton recorded in the second quarter of 2018. This is a direct opposite of national home prices that have been on the rise in the last months.

It is also worth noting that real estate prices and sales have significantly reduced across the board according to the latest figures. Sales of residential units fell by as much as 14 percent compared to the figures in October 2017, according to the statistics released by the Realtors Association of Edmonton. The worst hit category is the sale of rowhouses and duplexes, decreasing by over 30 percent compared the past year.

“It’s a dire situation when you look at the limited amount of sales with the inventory that we have,” said Greg Steele, an Edmonton-based realtor and former president of the Realtors Association.

However, the number of listings on the market has risen by four percent despite declining sales.

“It’s a challenging time, to say the least in our market and I don’t see it getting better,” Greg Steel continued.

The figures relate to the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area, which includes Sherwood Park, Spruce Grove, and St. Albert. The average price of a residential listing reduced to $358,954, down three percent. An average condominium is on the other hand sold for $221,293, a nine percent reduction compared to last year.

“I’m doing many, many market evaluations for clients that are struggling tremendously right now,” Steele said. “They’re absolutely disheartened by the value of their home.”

Greg Steele, an Edmonton-based realtor, has described the real estate market as a “dire situation” partly due to the increasing number of listing and declining sales. (CBC)

Homes are also staying on the market for a longer duration with figures showing that a single family home, for instance, is listed for an average of 62 days, 7 days longer than 2017.

A warning on the housing market in Edmonton was recently issued by The Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation, reiterating the vulnerability of the market to “overbuilding” – a situation where new housing projects are significantly higher than demand.

“The builders just kept on building throughout the summer, hoping things would turn around, but they haven’t turned around,” Steele said.

“There are open houses every single weekend at the show homes and people are walking through but you don’t see a lot of activity in the sales.”

Darcy Torjhelm, chair of the Realtors Association of Edmonton, has stated that the current market situation is beneficial to homebuyers as they have more options at a relatively lower cost.

“They’ve got a lot of choices, they don’t have to rush into something, they can make sure it’s exactly what they want,” he said.

Torjhelm also added that it is not strange for real estate prices and sales to fall around this time of year. However, he pointed out that his skepticism about the possibility of the market changing in the short-term is driven by the lack of confidence in the economy.

“I just don’t see things changing a whole lot right now,” he said. “The sky’s not falling but you have to be prudent out there.”