It was a banner year for residential home sales in Niagara. The year-end MLS® sales reports of the Niagara Association of REALTORS® indicate that sales activity in the Region jumped 16.8% in 2015.
Across Niagara (excluding the Town of Grimsby) there were 7370 homes sold during 2015 compared to 6309 in 2014. The current level of activity reflects a whopping 25.1% increase over the total of 5891 home sales reported in 2013.
By year-end the Niagara 12-month average sale price reached $$274,185 up 8.5 % from the figure of $252,669 recorded at the end of December 2014.
This annual growth rate represents a hyper acceleration in price growth compared to the 2014 appreciation rate of 4.9 % and the increase of 3.5% reported between year-ends 2012 and 2013. The year-end average price figures for 2013 and 2012 were $240,899 and $232,768 respectively .
Pelham Home Sales UP 21.1%
Closer to home, residential sales in Pelham climbed 21.1% reaching a total of 281 units sold compared to 232 in 2014 and 215 in 2013. We can expect this trend to continue as the overall population of the community grows in conjunction with the Town’s urban area expansion.
The 12-month average price in Pelham now stands at $403,110– up 7.2% from last year’s year-end figure of $376,069
Sales in Welland Jump 10.3%
In our neighbouring City of Welland sales activity was up 10.3% in 2015 with a total of 847 residential sales reported compared to 768 transactions recorded in 2014. The average price in the Rose City has blasted through the $200,000 threshold to reach $217,422 reflecting a 9.8% jump from the 2014 year-end figure of $198,039.
The historically low interest rates of the past several years have helped sustain demand, and have mitigated the impact of tightened lending criteria. While mortgage rate increases are anticipated during the coming year it will not have much impact on the real estate market, as the adjustment is likely to be minor and rates would continue to be low.
Expect the average sale price in Niagara to keep climbing in 2016 as demand for local housing continues to outpace available inventory
This article is part of our series of monthly Local Market Updates published on our Niagara Realty Source Report blog.
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