Despite temperatures cooling, Calgary's housing market was red-hot in October, setting a monthly record for the number of homes sold.
The swell of activity, which is expected to continue, was strong enough to set the city on track to break its annual record for home sales, according to the Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB).
The Alberta board says the region recorded 2,186 sales in October, up about 24% from 1,763 during the same month last year, and over 35% higher than the longer-term averages.
Year-to-date home sales of 23,848 are now on pace to hit new record highs and are currently 61% higher than average activity recorded over the past five years and 42% higher than 10-year averages.
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“Moving into the fourth quarter, the pace of housing demand continues to exceed expectations in the city,” said CREB chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie. “Much of the persistent strength is likely related to improving confidence in future economic prospects, as well as a sense of urgency among consumers to take advantage of the low-lending-rate environment.”
The board also said new listings for October reached 2,500, up almost 2% from 2,460 the same month the year prior.
While new listings have surely improved relative to last year, the recent robustness in sales has caused further deterioration in inventory levels, which remain 16% lower than last year as well as below longer-term averages for the month.
At the same time, supply levels have struggled to keep pace with demand, but much of the decline in the months of supply has been related to the strong sales levels. The board says that, as of October, the months of supply dipped to just over two months.
However, the persistently tight market conditions did cause some benchmark price gains last month. According to the board, the benchmark price in October reached $460,100, slightly higher than September and nearly 9% higher than the $422,600 recorded last October.
