Eric | Sep. 11, 2019
As I’ve always said, KW has a highly insulated Real Estate market! Our industry is just so smart and very stable: Education and Insurance is the backbone with a healthy dose of Tech. Our hums along regardless and in many ways can benefit in a macro weakness environment: education does well when people retrain or decide to further educate rather than enter the workforce, insurance is a staple and in most cases is mandatory, our discounted operating costs for the Tech industry vs other hubs like those in California, New York and Toronto also become attractive when looking to get lean. Our housing market also can benefit from weakness in the GTA: our home prices, rental rates and cost of living are below those in that area and attract those looking to reduce their costs – similar to what happened when Toronto home prices skyrocketed we benefited from those looking here for value.
Similarly, investing in Real Estate just makes sense: there is utility in your home – we can actually use our investment as physical shelter 😊 And for those with investment properties: having an investment that is based on a necessity for life is always a safe bet.
I know I always sound like the sky is falling, but I’m usually referring to less appreciation is the housing market rather than apocalypse scenarios. Real Estate is a longer play; yes, there are many that have stepped in and out trading real estate over the last 4 to 5 years and have done well. But, it only takes one bad property transaction as a flipper to wipe out years of gains. Invest in the long run with Real Estate, ignore the noise, and you will be rewarded.
Here is what happened in August vs a year ago: less homes listed, less homes sold, less homes available all the while the average sale prices for homes in KW increased 😊 Keep in mind that this is a very seasonal trend:
574 homes listed Down 14.5%
734 homes available at the end of August Down 17.3%
459 total homes sold in August Down 9.1%
267 single detached Down 11.9%
56 condos Down 13.8%
97 townhomes Down 4.9%
39 Semi-detached Up 11.4%
$524, 482 – Average price of all homes sold Up 6.4%
$615,568 – Average Single detached price Up 5.4%
$324,778 – Average condo price Down 3.1%
$420,239 – Average Townhouse price Up 18.3%
$441,803 – Average Semi price Up 8.1%
Median price of all homes sold in August: $495,000 Up 8.1%
“REAL ESTATE IS AN IMPERISHABLE ASSET, EVERY INCREASING IN VALUE. IT IS THE MOST SOLID SECURITY THAT HUMAN INGENUITY HAS DEVISED. IT IS THE BASIS OF ALL SECURITY AND ABOUT THE ONLY INDESTRUCTIBLE SECURITY”
Russell Sage, American Financier and Politician
