February home sales remain steady, as inventory continues to fall.
The London and St Thomas Association of REALTORS® (LSTAR) announced 536 homes* were sold in February, down 32.8% over the same period last year, which holds the record for best February results since LSTAR began tracking sales data in 1978.
"Inventory, or Active Listings, continues to experience a dramatic decrease compared to 2017, which is having a huge impact on sales," said Jeff Nethercott, 2018 LSTAR President. "There were 1,103 active listings, down 26.4% from this time last year. This is the lowest level of inventory we’ve had in the region over the last 10 years."
Although inventory remains low, average home sales price in London and St. Thomas continues to rise. The average February sales price in the region was $349,848, up 10.8% over February 2017. By geographic area, London South was $375,329, up 15.3% from last February. In London North, average home sales price was $424,959, up 14.5% compared to the previous year, while in London East, it was $286,770, an increase of 10.5% from February 2017. In St. Thomas, it was $307,383, up 27.4% over last February.
"One of the other factors we look at is the sales-to-new listings ratio," Nethercott said. "According to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), a ratio between 40% and 60% is generally consistent with a balanced housing market. In February, London and St. Thomas had a sales-to-new listings ratio of 69.5%, which CREA says represents conditions in the marketplace that favour sellers. It illustrates the high demand and low supply trend currently happening in the region."
