Lower Sales, Higher Housing Inventory, High Mortgage Interest Rates - January to June 2023

Two years ago, in the Spring of 2022, we experienced an extended Sellers Market in Hamilton, Ontario with historically low mortgage interest rates and historically high home purchase prices. Currently, we are on the verge of a Buyer's Market in Hamilton with high mortgage rates, an increased inventory of houses for sale, and a significant drop in real estate values. The Bank of Canada rate was .5% in March 2022 and then continued to raise the rates until it reached 5% in July 2023 to combat the...

Residential Real Estate Market Report May 2024

Sales in May throughout the Hamilton-Burlington Real Estate Board reached 1,032 units, which is 20% lower than last year, and 31% below long-term trends for this time of year.  All property types experienced this decline in sales and it was significant enough to wipe out the gains made earlier this year, resulting in a 3% decrease in year-to-date sales. New Listings have continued to rise, up over 10% year over year. With the decrease in sales and the increase in new listings, the current inventory sits at the highest level reported since...

Residential Real Estate Market Report April 2024

Sales in April throughout the Hamilton-Burlington Real Estate Board reached 1,041 units, which is 7% lower than last year, and well below long-term trends for the month of April.  Despite the decrease in sales over the last 2 months, year-to-date sales are comparable to those in 2023. New Listings have continued to rise, up over 34% year over year. These recent gains in inventory are helping the real estate market remain in a balanced condition for now. Inventory levels have been exceptionally low for most of the past decade, so this can be...

Residential Real Estate Market Report March 2024

Overall Sales in March reached 996 units, almost 6% lower than last year.  This decline in March Sales was not enough to offset the gains reported earlier this year, however, the year-to-date sales are still below long-term trends. New Listings have continued to rise, up over 7% year over year. These recent gains in inventory are helping the real estate market stay in a fairly balanced condition for now, which is a great opportunity for Buyers looking to get into the market! This is the first time in many years we are not entering the...

Residential Real Estate Market Report February 2024

Sales in February saw a slight gain year over year. Leap year helped a little with that extra day. Year-to-date sales are 9% higher than last year, however they are 16% lower than long-term trends. New Listings jumped almost 23% year over year., which improved supply across almost every price range in the total region. The Bank of Canada held its key interest rate to 5% again in early March stating they are still concerned about underlying inflation. There has been no change since July last year. Buyer confidence seems to be increasing...

Residential Real Estate Market Report January 2024

Is Buyer Confidence improving? There was no rate change by the Bank of Canada so far this year, which seems to have helped buyers in their decision to move ahead with a purchase. Sales were slightly higher than last year. Inventory slowed somewhat but are still 11% higher than reported a year ago. Sales are still below long-term trends and will probably stay that way until interest rates start coming down. 

January 2024 had 1,132 Total Residential Listings come through the Hamilton Real Estate Board as reported by The REALTORS®...

2023 Year in Review Statistics & Property Values Report

Lending Rates in 2023 remained high and reached levels not seen in 20 years. There were 7 Bank of Canada rate hikes in 2022 and another 3 in 2023, going from .25% in Feb 2022 to where it sits now at 5%. As a result of these higher interest rates, Residential Sales declined throughout the REALTORS ® Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB) Area for the 2nd year in a row. The only price range that saw sales improve were those under $600,000, which only accounts for 20% of the supply. Inventory levels increased over the latter half of...