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Montréal Real Estate Market Slowed in Second Quarter of 2010

Montréal Real Estate Market Slowed in Second Quarter of 2010

Although second quarter sales in the Montréal Metropolitan Area decreased slightly by 4 per cent compared to the second quarter of last year, overall year-to-date sales increased by 16 per cent, according to the Greater Montréal Real Estate Board's (GMREB) MLS® statistics.

“It’s normal that sales slowed at this time of the year, as the market was very active in the first quarter. Consumers who had put their property purchase on hold due to the recession were back on the market and, as well, other people bought their properties earlier than planned because they wanted to avoid a possible increase in mortgage rates,” said Michel Beauséjour, FCA, Chief Executive Officer of the Québec Federation of Real Estate Boards (QFREB) and the GMREB. “Thanks to this strong activity in the first quarter, sales in the Montréal area are up 16 per cent in the first six months of 2010 compared to the first six months of 2009,” he added.

In terms of property categories, condominiums performed well in the second quarter of 2010, registering a 1 per cent increase in sales compared to the second quarter of 2009. Plexes registered a slight decrease in sales of 2 per cent, while single-family homes posted a 6 per cent decrease in sales.

Geographically, Laval stood out as being the only region in the Montréal area that registered an increase in sales (+5 per cent) in the second quarter of the year compared to the second quarter of last year. Sales fell slightly in Vaudreuil-Soulanges, on the Island of Montréal and on the North Shore, with respective decreases of 1, 2 and 3 per cent. Finally, sales on the South Shore decreased by 12 per cent in the second quarter of 2010 compared to the same period last year.

As for prices, all property categories registered an increase in median price in the second quarter of the year. The median price of single-family homes reached $255,000, a 9 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. The median price of condominiums increased by 8 per cent to reach $210,000, while that of plexes increased by 10 per cent to reach $384,250.

Provincial Sales Decrease Slightly in Q2 but Increase Over the First Six Months of the Year Although sales across the province fell slightly by 4 per cent in the second quarter, year-to-date sales have increased by 13 per cent compared to the same period last year. Property prices also continued to increase.

“The second quarter decrease in sales is no surprise because the first quarter market was extremely busy due to consumers getting back into the market after the recession,” said Michel Beauséjour, FCA, Chief Executive Officer of the QFREB. “The strong activity at the start of this year contributed to the overall year-to-date increase in sales of 13 per cent,” he added.

In terms of property categories, condominiums performed well in the second quarter of the year, registering a 1 per cent increase in sales compared to the same period last year. Plexes followed with a slight decrease in sales of 3 per cent, while single-family homes posted a 6 per cent decrease in sales.

As for prices, half of all single-family homes sold across the province in the second quarter of 2010 were sold at a price higher than $213,000, a 9 per cent increase compared to the second quarter of last year. The median price of condominiums reached $196,849, a 9 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2009, while that of plexes increased by 10 per cent to reach $320,000.

“We’re currently in a seller’s market. This explains why prices continue to increase despite the decrease in sales in the second quarter,” said Michel Beauséjour.

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Québec Landlords Association (1)

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