Housing prices in March increased significantly in the Montreal Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), compared to the same period last year. The average single-family home is up 18 per cent at $565,550, while condos now cost 16 per cent more, at $402,600.
A tight market continues to be an advantage to sellers as buyers compete for declining inventory. In fact, overbidding occurred in half of all transactions, according to the Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers (QPAREB). In its residential statistics for the month of March, QPAREB said lower-priced properties are still being squeezed out of the CMA.
Charles Brant, director of market analysis says this could be the last surge before the prices begin moderating.
“This new feverish surge, against a backdrop of overbidding, may be one of the very last ones,” he says. “Indeed, the number of active listings tends to stabilize, or even increase in certain sectors and categories, after the steady decline recorded since the beginning of the pandemic.
Sales continue declining across the region
Sales in the region of Montreal continued to decline when compared to the same period last year, with a 13 per cent decrease in residential sales in March 2022.
The decrease in sales was comparable across all residential categories, with a decline of -14 per cent for single-family homes, -12 per cent for small income properties (two to five units) and -11 per cent for condominiums.
Across the region, sales declined in Montreal and Vaudreuil-Soulanges by -10 per cent and -15 per cent in the North Shore. Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, however, experienced a particularly significant slowdown, with a 37 per cent decrease.
The lack of active listings is a continuing trend, with a 10 per cent drop compared to March 2021. The inventory seems to have reached its low point in the region, yet there was a significant increase on the Island of Montreal (8 per cent) and on the South Shore (7 per cent).
“The new increase in key interest rates anticipated for April 13 should help calm things down as more selling homeowners may put their property on the market to take advantage of a still very favourable market climate,” he adds. “However, in this context of rising rates, the pool of potential buyers is shrinking, while prices are reaching new highs.”
