Demand for new inventory continues in Chatham-Kent

Residential sales activity recorded through the MLS® System of the Chatham-Kent Association of REALTORS® numbered 108 units in February 2017, rising 25.6% on a year-over-year basis. On year-to-date basis home sales totalled 173 units over the first two months of the year, rising 21% from the same period in 2016.

“Following a drop in new supply and sales in January, both inched back to life in February with sales edging out February 2016 by a single sale, forcing prices upward for the month,” said Kristi Willder, President of the Chatham-Kent Association of REALTORS®. “With the overall stock of listings at all-time lows, new listings will be critically important in the months ahead if sales are to maintain this pace. Intense competition among buyers is unlikely to subside anytime soon.”

The average price of homes sold in February 2017 was $179,485, up 16.6% from February 2016. This was the second highest level on record. The year-to-date average price was $175,703, rising 14.3% from the first two months of the year. There were 242 active residential listings on the Association’s MLS® System at the end of February 2017. This was down 50.1% from February 2016, and marks the lowest level on record for active supply at this time of the year. There were just 2.2 months of inventory at the end of February 2017, less than half the 5.6 months reported a year earlier and an all-time record low. The number of months of inventory is the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.