Saskatoon market edging closer to balanced conditions – report

In its latest report, the Saskatoon Region Association of Realtors (SRAR) stated that the sales-to-listing ratio in October was just over 40%, with the number of units sold that month (287 units) declining by 8% from October 2016 but increasing by 10% on a month-over-month basis.

Saskatoon’s year-to-date sales stood at 3,030 homes, falling by 6.7% compared to the same period last year. Total listings for the year decreased slightly from last year, to 8,069 from 8,217.

SRAR CEO Jason Yochim noted that the mortgage rule changes as well as the uncertainty surrounding interest rates will foment a slight increase in sales in the last two months of 2017.

“I expect that there may be a slight spike in sales as the year winds down … due to recently introduced mortgage qualification rules for conventional buyers plus a sense of upward pressure on interest rates,” Yochim said, as quoted by Global News.

Meanwhile, the median selling price of Saskatoon homes in October remained unchanged at $330,000. On average, the city’s residential properties took 54 days to get sold.

Regarding the upcoming mortgage rule changes, SRAR emphasized that while these revisions were introduced to address the overheated Toronto and Vancouver markets, the newly tightened stress test affects local real estate markets.

The stress test for all homebuyers, including those with large down payments, is expected to start on January 1, 2018.

MBN

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