As we head
into the final two months of 2014, Southern Georgian Bay area real estate
continues to reflect a strong demand among Buyers. After a slow start to 2014 with first quarter
MLS® dollar sales down 6%, the market has roared back with MLS® sales overall now
running well ahead of last year.
MLS® dollar volume in October of $63.1
million reflected a 2% increase over October 2013 with MLS® unit sales for the
month up almost 5%. MLS® sales
year-to-date of $597.3 million reflects an increase of 8% over the first 10
months of 2013. Virtually all area
municipalities are showing a year-to-date increase in single family home sales with
the Municipality of Meaford showing the greatest gain. Year-to-date MLS® single family home unit
sales in the Municipality of Meaford are up 14% followed by the Blue Mountains
with a 10% increase. Single family home
sales in Clearview Township reflect a 7% gain over 2013 while Collingwood and
Wasaga Beach are up 3% and 2% respectively.
Total MLS®
dollar sales to the end of October are $597 million, up $46 million or 8% from
2013. MLS® unit sales for the year are
actually down from one year ago with 1,887 sales reported in 2014 versus 2,104 in
the first ten months of 2013. While unit
sales are down, MLS® dollar volume continues to increase due to the higher
number of upper end home and condo sales taking place in the area. Year-to-date there have been 66 single family
home and condo sales over $750,000 in the area compared to 47 last year,
an
increase of 40%
Area MLS® condominium sales have been very
strong throughout 2014 with sales year-to-date of 381 individual units
reflecting a 15% increase in sales over the first 10 months of 2013. MLS® condominium sales in the Blue Mountains
are up 24% with 125 units sold year-to-date compared to 101 sales in the same
period last year. Sales of MLS® listed
condominiums in Collingwood of 224 units through the end of October reflects an
11% increase from one year ago. Condominiums are increasingly becoming popular
with area buyers looking to escape the maintenance tasks that are associated with
single family home and chalet ownership and this is especially true with
recreational buyers. Condominiums are also an affordable alternative for first
time buyers with two bedroom, two bath units in Cranberry selling for
significantly less than a modest post war bungalow in Collingwood with less
square footage.
In 2013, MLS® sales in the area exceeded $600
million for the first time coming in at just under $625 million for the year. It
would appear that with two months remaining in 2014, we are destined to set a
new record for MLS® dollar sales volume once again, a clear indication that demand
for area properties is stronger than ever.
