After a strong start, Chatham-Kent residential real estate sales came back down to earth in the latter half of 2022, but there are signs the market could regain some momentum this year.
After a strong start, Chatham-Kent residential real estate sales came back down to earth in the latter half of 2022, but there are signs the market could regain some momentum this year.
The 76 residential units sold through the MLS system of the Chatham-Kent Association of Realtors in December 2022 was a steep drop of 42.4 per cent from December 2021, according to a monthly update released on Tuesday.
Home sales were 12.6 per cent below the five-year average and 0.3 per cent below the 10-year average for the month of December. On an annual basis, home sales totaled 1,347 units over 2022, a substantial decline of 26.6 per cent from the same period in 2021.
“December 2022 posted an average level of sales activity for that time of year and the full year of 2022 posted annual totals that were in line with the average compared to recent years,” association president Matt Bechard said in the release.
“However, we know that last year was anything but average and this annual figure masks the volatility by blending the highs of spring with the lows of the second half of the year into one number.
“The momentum heading into 2023 looks promising, with sales activity still moving up steadily and new listings coming onto the market at very supportive levels. A few more months of this and we can almost call it a return to a more normal market, but we’ll have to wait and see how many buyers step back off the sidelines and return in the spring.”
The average price of homes sold in last month was $384,644, a sharp decrease of 12 per cent from December 2021.
However, the more comprehensive annual average price was $459,950, a 9.6 per cent bump from all of 2021.
The dollar value of all home sales in December 2022 was $29.2 million, a huge drop of 49.4 per cent from the same month in 2021.
The number of new listings saw a sizable gain of 24.4 per cent from December 2021. The 107 new residential listings added last month was the largest number added in the month of December in more than a decade, according to the association.
New listings were 22.1 per cent above the five-year average and 34.8 per cent above the 10-year average for the month of December.
Active residential listings numbered 286 units on the market at the end of December, more than double the levels from a year earlier, rocketing up 262 per cent from the end of December 2021.
Active listings haven’t been this high in the month of December in more than five years, according to the association. Active listings were 79 per cent above the five-year average and 12.6 per cent above the 10-year average for the month of December.
Months of inventory numbered 3.8 at the end of December 2022, up from the 0.6 months recorded at the end of December 2021 and above the long-run average of 3.7 months for this time of year.
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.