Calgary had a notable decline in the real estate market last month.
According to Calgary Herald, Multiple Listing Services (MLS) in the areas of Calgary were said to be 1,810 for the month of October but that figure is actually 36.4 percent lower than recorded from the same month last year. Based on the report released by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), the rate of 36.4 percent the greatest decline in Canada's major housing markets.
Besides Calgary, Alberta has also seen a decline in sales at the rate of 28.9 percent down to 4,327 closings. But despite the decrease in these two markets, the MLS sales were up 0.1 percent to 41,653 across Canada. And according to CREA this is the second highest monthly level in a span of nearly six years. Calgary observed that MLS sale price drops by 4.4 percent year-over-year down to $444,535 in October. On the other hand, Alberta saw a 3.9 percent drop to $384,381. The two scenarios happened even if overall Canada has seen an average sales price increase of 8.3 percent to $454,976 compared to last year.
Chief Economist Doug Porter from BMO Capital Markets said it is mostly the cities that rely on their oil production that saw their housing market relax significantly. Speaking of this, he said, "The renewed sag in oil in recent months looks to have triggered a renewed weakening in housing markets across much of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Six of the 25 major markets reported double-digit declines in sales last month, and four of those were in these two provinces."
According to Calgary Herald, year-over-year decline in sales from a year ago were also evident in Edmonton at 16.3 percent, Saskatoon at 21.4 percent and Regina at 12.3 percent. Given these decline in sales in these areas, economist Diana Petramala from TD Economics points that the home sales in Canada driven by markets in Ontario and British Columbia. She also remarked, "Markets in oil-producing provinces continue to remain incredibly weak."
