January was another hot month for the real estate market in Grey Bruce.
The Realtors Association of Grey Bruce Owen Sound says 149 homes sold last month. While this is only 1.4 per cent higher than January 2020, it marks the most residential home sales in the region in the month in five years.
The dollar value of all homes sold in the area was $81.8-million, an increase of 35.6 per cent over January 2020. The realtors’ association says this also set a new record for the month of January.
The average price of homes sold in January was just over $549,000, more than 33 per cent higher compared to the same month in 2020.
RAGBOS notes the MLS Home Price Index is a more advanced and accurate tool to gauge a neighbourhood’s home price levels and trends. It is based on the value home buyers assign to various housing attributes, which tend to evolve over time.
Using the MLS Home Price Index, the composite benchmark for Grey Bruce was $399,100 in January 2021, an increase of more than 28 per cent over the same month last year.
The benchmark price for single family homes and apartments surged highest year-over-year in Grey Bruce, while townhouse/row houses are up only slightly.
RAGBOS explains active listings at the end of January are at the lowest levels in more than three decades, with only 284 residential units available for sale.
There were only 173 new residential listings in January, a decline of more than 21 per cent over the same month last year.
One metric indicates the market continues to move a quick pace. RAGBOS says months of inventory numbered 1.9 at the end of last month, below the long-run average of 8.8 months for this time of year. This number indicates how long it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.
The Realtors Association of Grey Bruce Owen Sound covers a geographical area that includes Grey and Bruce counties, and part of Wellington County.