Real estate sales in the city rose and fell in 2022, but house prices sit about 4 per cent above were they started the year as of the end of November, according to figures from the Medicine Hat Real Estate Board.--News Photo Collin Gallant
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
A wild year for real estate across the country is wrapping with Medicine Hat bucking the national trend downward, but only slightly, and uncertainty will remain into 2023, according to Canadian Real Estate Association.
Through 11 months of the year, the local sector saw detached home sales dip slightly in November compared to late 2021. But for the year-to-date, current year prices remained above where they were 12 months ago.
Single-family homes performed better than other classes of property however, and combined with continually tight supply for property coming on the market, that puts the Hat in “seller’s market” territory.
It’s only one of 11 regions in the country with the rating, published by the CREA this month, including mainly remote and smaller communities, like Lloydminster, Prince Alberta and central Alberta.
Most major markets, like Calgary, Edmonton, Regina and even parts of Vancouver moved to more balanced conditions and a booming cycle coming out of the pandemic, while a smaller number, including Toronto, now favour buyers.
Medicine Hat remained a “seller’s market” based on lower listings and selling prices as per data analyzed by the Canadian Real Estate Association released data analysis on Dec. 19
Officials warned that not much might change until the spring, when the real estate sector traditionally perks up, and more may be known about the Bank of Canada’s interest rate strategy.
Lending rates rose steeply throughout the year as the bank took action to cool general inflation. The effect is to slow sales and price escalation.
That comes after the start of the year when stiff competition and “rapidly rising prices prevailed” across the country, said CREA chair Jill Oudil.
“All the other fundamental factors needed for the market to take off again are still out there.”
In the Hat, the average single-family home sale in 2022 closed at $353,420, considering 1,073 transactions over 11 months. That is four per cent higher than at the same time in 2021. Semi-detached properties sold for an average of $291,120 (up three per cent on 42 sales), and apartment-style units and condos fell three per cent to $180,940 over 136 transactions.
Late-year demand for townhouses brought the year-over-year average price up 5 per cent to $214,860.
The total number of residential units on the market fell by 6 per cent compared to late November 2021, but that is most acute for townhomes, while semi-detached homes were one-fifth higher.
