SRAR releases 2007 year end Saskatoon real estate stats
Saskatoon REALTORS® were kept busy in 2007 assisting 4,446 home-buyers with their purchase of over one billion dollars of residential real estate. The $1,034,826,425.00 number represents an 88% increase in residential dollar volume from 2006, which had a dollar volume total of $ 550,779,874.00.
2007 saw a total MLS® dollar volume record of $1.367 billion dollars with over 6,000 properties being purchased. This number, also a record, was up by 37% from 2006 when 4,411 units were sold.
The month of December was very active with 210 residential units selling, up 34% from December 2006 when only 157 units were purchased. Year to date 4,446 residential homes were sold.
The six-month rolling average sale price was $250,428.00. The average residential selling price in December was $255,271.00. This number also up 46% from December 2006 when the average sales price was $175,301.00.This increase in the average selling price indicates strong demand for mid to upper price range homes. Year to date the average selling price is $232,754.00 up 45% from 2006.
The average selling price is derived by dividing the month’s unit sales number into the month’s dollar volume. The percentage of change from month to month should not be used unilaterally as prices do vary from area to area. Consumers wishing to know the value of their home should contact a REALTOR® member for an accurate evaluation of their property.
Residential listing inventory was up at the end of December with 346 properties being available for sale. That number up 37% from December 2006 when 253 homes were available for purchase.
1,050 rural residential units were purchased in 2007. This number is up 35% from 2006 when 780 rural residential properties were purchased. The average selling price for rural residential properties in 2007 was $182,314.00 increasing by 24% from 2006 when the average selling price was $146,573.00.
All indicators point to a very strong real estate market in 2008. There is exceptional consumer optimism in Saskatoon. Investors from across Canada and other parts of the world are excited about our city and our province and appear ready to invest in all areas of real estate. It is easy to share this optimism when one considers Saskatchewan’s opportunity for unlimited growth while still remaining one of the most affordable places to live in Canada.
I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions. All of my contact info is here. Please feel free to call or email.
Follow our daily updates on Twitter @SaskatoonHomes.
Norm Fisher
Royal LePage Saskatoon Real Estate
37 comments so far. We'd love to hear your thoughts.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:54 PM
Happy New Year everyone!
I’m interested in seeing what 2008 has in store for real estate in Saskatoon. Normally we always see inventory bounce back after the holidays – even last year saw a slight increase in January – so it will be interesting to see if that happens this month. My own personal feelings are that demand seems pretty strong these days and I wouldn’t be surprised to invenory actually get smaller during January.
Average price will be interesting to watch too. I started tracking median list prices for the first time in November rather than trying to remember it all. On Nov 2/07 I had the median list price for a house as being $280,000 – for a condo it was 229,000. Today the median list price for a house is 339,000 and the median list price of a condo is 219,000. With such a small inventory its really easy to move the median list price though. More listings should start coming through week by week from now untill summer and it will be interesting to see if they bring average list prices back down or not. How all of this effects average sales price remains to be seen.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:54 PM
This ran accross my desk today. If anyone watches this I wouldn’t mind reading a post on what its all about:
Dawn Zhou, the CEO of the Saskatoon based Athabasca Potash Inc (API) will be on Business Television tomorrow.(Market Morning 9:30-11:00 Eastern Time) Athabasca Potash is an emerging potash development company with properties in Saskatchewan (http://www.athabascapotash.ca/)
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:54 PM
Wow.. over a billion dollars of property. I feel like Dr. Evil except saying (with a dramatic pause), “1 BEEEEELEEEEON DOLLARS!”
I have no idea how the market will move this year but I’ll be watching the numbers as well.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:55 PM
Doug,
thanks for the stats on median prices but I am wondering where can one find the average house price, just houses? Is there a link on this website? I can’t seem to find it.Thanks.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:55 PM
Doug,
Wow! That median house number is pretty high. I think you’re right though regarding it’s reliability with only 160 houses on the market. The higher end stuff is hanging around longer than the product priced at or below average so the median in probably skewed because of it.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:55 PM
Todd,
That is a lot of bucks indeed. Who would have imagined that kind of a volume increase?
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:55 PM
George,
These are the averages for the last three months in each of the five major areas. Houses only.
Area 1 – $357,525
Area 2 – $293,766
Area 3 – $285,883
Area 4 – $146,866
Area 5 – $252,151
All of Saskatoon – $264,889
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:55 PM
OK gentlemen,
2008=Recession
I know thats not what you want to hear.
The market will crash.
Foreclosures etc.
Good luck
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:56 PM
Oracle,
Well, the markets would certainly have to crash, hard and fast for Saskatchewan to fall into a recession in 2008. Seems to me that there is a fair bit of momentum behind this province and that a catastrophic event of some kind would have to occur for such sudden change to come about.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:56 PM
Oracle,
you are a clown.
If Saskatchewan goes into a recession with the best economy in Canada, I would hate to be in some of the other provinces.
In the Star Phoenix today, there is an article that says the forestry and hog industry and some manufacteurs are going to take a hit in 2008. Other than that, the year looks promising for all other industries.
I don’t know if you have investments or not, but most financial planners promote a diversified portfolio for good long term growth. This is how I look at our province now. These have already starting booming or will very shortly in our province; oil, gas, ethanol, biodiesel, agriculture (mostly grain) potash, uranium along with other industries we have.
I am bullish on Saskatchewan’s economy now and in the future. I have no problem with people writing their opinions, but when you put “good luck” at the end of your comment, it seems you enjoy people being hurt. Either you know nothing of Saskatchewan or you are just a clown and we don’t need you.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:56 PM
Norm,
I read the article in the SP and it is very bullish for real estate in Saskatoon in 2008. Is this a common theme amongst realtors these days?
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:57 PM
Here is a question for all of the people who predict a market boom again in spring of 2008.
if the market will indeed boom in 2008, why all the investors are still waiting AT THE MOMENT?do they take their xmas break, january and feburary break? and all of sudden in March, they start buying houses when the price starts going up?
lets assume another market boom in spring 2008 which means the house price right now would be the lowest in the next couple years. what the hell are all the home buyers waiting for?”buy at low sell at high” isn’t that the simplest investment rule of all?
i’ve seen people on this board give their predictions based on “previous year numbers indicate…”, oh..come on..saskatoon has experienced something that “previous year“has never experienced before in 2007, then again how can you predict 2008 with “previous year number”?
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:57 PM
I’m not sure the house market market will boom again this spring, it is possible. Low supply and high demand suggest an increase in the near future. I believe there will be increases this year but smaller gains than last year. How much though?
To answer your question about investors. I think alot of them have their money in Calgary and Edmonton right now. If those cities prices go up some of investors will sell there and buy here. We have seen this before. Listening to Gormley this morning, we are THE province this coming year.
Your 2nd question, right now there is not much choice on mls. 160 houses with almost half that are in less than desirable neighbourhoods. Not saying westside is bad, there are some great areas, but some of these other neighbourhoods, I would not walk at night, nevermind buy a house.
On your third point, I agree, anybody can give their predictions but nobody knows until after the fact what will happen. But that is the beauty of this blog, you can voice your opinion right or wrong. People who read this blog can then form there own ideas and go from there.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:58 PM
foreign investor,
What do you mean when you say, “what the hell are all the home buyers waiting for?” I see a pretty active market. In December, unit sales were up 34% over last year and dollar volume increased 95%. Both of those numbers were even higher in November.
I still maintain that the sharpest investors have come and gone. It takes a lot of jam to “invest” in something that has risen 50 points in a year. Regina, my man. Regina!
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:58 PM
foreign investor,
Yes Saskatoon has experienced a crazy 2007 and I totally agree that predictions based from this are a shot in the dark at best. What I’m concerned about is self-fulfilling prophecies. With a lot of hype from banks, real estate agents, builders, and others with vested interests, it could cause the same kind of panic buying come spring.
It’s one thing to hope for a prosperous city with lots of opportunities for it’s citizens. It’s quite another to be rooting for another explosion in real estate market which would do more damage than good. It’s the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. There is a gap, and it’s widening.
If the lower to middle-class people follow the market blindly and listen to the people who are profiting from this madness, nothing is going to stop it. Like I’ve said before, we’re all accountable for our own actions.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Heather,
For the record, I agree with you 100% and I would be most pleased if we never saw the same kind of explosion which we experienced in 2007. This kind of growth is “unhealthy” and I don’t believe that another run up in values would be sustainable, unless of course, people keep flowing into this province carrying bags of money. Otherwise, we need solid income growth to keep our market healthy.
FYI, Scotiabank and RBC are on the record as saying that “Saskatoon is overvalued” and some agents actually think we’ve seen enough. We’re not all shouting “buy, buy, buy!”
George,
With due respect to the EO of the Saskatoon Region Association of Realtors, we must keep in mind that this “prediction” of another wild ride is made on behalf of an organization which represents the interests of Realtors. The National Association of Realtors, the US organization continues to pump sunshine on a monthly basis even though many of their markets are in the tank. Through some statistical manipulation they are actually managing to call 2007, “the second best year on record.” Tell that to the thousands that can hardly give their homes away.
Having said all of that, it’s also important to be realistic and keep our eyes open to what’s going on in Saskatchewan. I just read a special section about Saskatchewan in the winter issue of Trade and Commerce magazine. It outlines all of the things which are happening here from agriculture, to export, to resources, etc.
“Saskatchewan has everything that the world needs right now. We’re in the sweet spot!” says Dale Botting, CEO and president of Saskatchewan Trade and Export Partnership.
I’m not rushing out to buy real estate personally, but I wouldn’t sell my home for more than its market value right now.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:59 PM
Norm,
you have a good head on your shoulders. I nominate you as the new EO of SRAR, cause I know you want it badly. Just kidding. Thanks for your honesty.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:59 PM
George,
I was actually president of the Saskatoon Real Estate Board when Harry was hired for the job so I had the pleasure of offering it to him. A few of my colleagues suggested I apply but I wouldn’t have that job at twice the money. No matter what decisions are made, some portion of the membership hates you for it. Someone is always lying in wait to clobber you for a mistake.
Harry is a tough guy though and seems to take it all in stride. He’s an excellent operator and has my full support.
Having said that, if he ever publicly said, “don’t buy a house right now” he’d be tied and quartered, I’m sure.
May 22nd, 2009 at 3:59 PM
Yeah lets keep the Star Phoenix story in perspective. They say the market looks good and everything is hot hot hot but they seem to base the story around comments from the President of SRAR and a mortgage broker. What do you think they’ll say???!!!
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:00 PM
I do not speak of just Saskatchewan falling into a recession.This is worldwide like back in the twenties.But worse.It will be caused by a US recession.Stock markets will crash.Power outages will be unstoppable as fuel prices rise so high.Please take heed on my warning.I have seen the future.Prepare yourselves for famine like we have never seen before.Stock up canned goods and water.Keep supply of cash or gold items.Just make sure you are prepared for the big recession.This will set us back a hundred years.Just be prepared thats all.
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:00 PM
Just wondering,
where all the people who call me a pumper are. I get pi$$ed on for saying I think the market is going to $287,000 by May (with factual reasons), yet Oracle says this:
“OK gentlemen,
2008=Recession
I know thats not what you want to hear.
The market will crash.
Foreclosures etc.
Good luck”
which is obviously a non-factual bash, yet none of you have posted about that. Just more proof that some of you who claim to be impartial are actually not.
P.S. I think Oracle’s last post holds some weight. Just not in 2008. Maybe in a few years after the super cycle has peaked. Not so doom and gloom as well, but definately a depression.
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:01 PM
In Saskatoon, the price of home ownership has risen higher too fast and we have taken a large hit to housing affordability, true, but assuming that most investors are from outside of Saskatoon the average cost of housing in this city is still around 100K lower than he national average. That either means that the rest of the country has nicer or bigger houses or Saskatoon still looks affordable to the rest of the country.
If Saskatchewan is a sweet spot right now, it is a position which Alberta undoubtedly has held for a few years prior to 2007. Just look at the numbers Calgary in 2005 and 2006. We are missing the opportunities because we can get past what we want to happen. If we concentrate on what is happening and try and see it from the eyes investor looking at Saskatoon, we may not like it, but at lest we open our selves to the same opportunities they have. It’s not about liking were the market is going. Since I already own a home here, this latest boom has improved equity position. I am not trying to hurt anybody by saying that, just stating a fact. If I sell my home I gain little because I have to buy back into the same market and there are some costs involved. However if I leverage my existing home I can buy a revenue property. I guess that make me an evil investor, not because I am adding a property to the rental marker, but because I would also be speculating on that properties future value. Here is the kicker, should I invest in Saskatoon or a city like Winnipeg the average price is well below the national and I have also heard good think about lately. Winnipeg has not seen the drastic effects of the boom like we have? Norm, you seem to like Regina, but it doesn’t have the water supply for growth that other cities have and most of the newly found resources are in the northern part of the province. Maybe Alex has an opinion on this one.
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:01 PM
Sorry Northstar,
I didn’t think Oracle’s post even dignified a response. I agree, it was ridiculous. There is an ugly time ahead as the result of level of inflation and I think saskatchewan may be hit harder than some other provinces but I wouldn’t suggest stockpiling gold and food just yet…
J.
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:01 PM
Brian,
I think Alex would suggest that the whole lot of you go to hell in a hand bag, but I’m just guessing.
Most of us don’t mind an investor who wants to offer decent rental accomodations to someone who chooses not to, or is unable to purchase a home.
Johny and Northstar,
I’ve actually heard some interesting arguments which predict a total collapse of the western economy, but what’s the point in going there? Doesn’t matter what you do with your money if that happens. It would all be worthless.
As far as Saskatchewan is concerned, you guys should dig up a copy of that special section of Trade and Commerce (Winter, 2007). To read it, you’d think Saskatchewan is the land of milk and honey. There are various thoughts put forward as to why Saskatchewan is in better shape than most provinces as we move forward.
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:02 PM
The USA economy this year is doing to be dismal and most of the stock market sectors will be down to flat. The only sectors of the market that will go up substantially according to the prediction will be agriculture (e.g. Potash), energy and precious metals (gold). That explains why Saskatchewan is one of the most favourable spots to invest right now.
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:02 PM
Hey Oracle read up on the US post-war growth period, now take what you learn and apply it to China, India and the rest of the developing world. What the US did post-war, China, India, etc are also gonna do, but at 1000 times the rate. I’ll give you US consumerism still drives a big chunk of the world economy, but it’s not gonna disappear completely, only slow down a little. What decrease in US consumer spending there is will be offset by resource spending by the rest of the world. Don’t forget Canada is a resource economy and will benefit greatly.
On a housing note, I’m from Edmonton and after checking through your MLS listings, prices of comparable properties in certain areas (area 3) are now almost equal to those in Edmonton.
May 22nd, 2009 at 4:02 PM
Neil,
good post. A recession in the US is possible this year and Can + US economies are tied together pretty well. With that said, I believe Eastern Canada will suffer more because of this compared to the West. Western Canada has the resources the emerging countries of China and India want. Their middle classes are growing at an big rate every year. Just take a look at Saskatchewan’s resources and the wants by the world and you will see why I am bullish about saskatchewan’s future.
May 25th, 2009 at 10:57 AM
This, on that, from Trade and Commerce discussion with Dale Botting, CEO and president of Saskatchewan Trade and Export Partnership (STEP)
The great diversity of Saskatchewan’s export market, both in goods as well as trading partners, has helped to protect the province from challenges such as currency fluctuations between the Canadian and U.S. dollars.
“Of all the provinces in Canada, we are the province least reliant on the U.S. market. The U.S. market is still clearly important to us, but we sell more to other countries percentage-wise of any province in Canada,” says Botting.
“China has emerged as our second largest export partner. We’re one of the few jurisdictions in the world that can say they have a trade surplus with China, because of the demand for potash. On a gross export volume basis, we are the largest traders to India of any Canadian province, primarily through our export of lentils and pulse crops.”
“Pakistan is one of our fastest growing markets of all countries on a percentage basis across all export sectors. Their consumption of Saskatchewan goods over the past decade has increased 98 percent,” says Botting.
“We’ve seen growth of over 25,000 percent in the last 10 years in short-line farm equipment manufactured and exported to the former Soviet States. The market share of Saskatchewan-made farm equipment in Australia and South America is also dominant.”
Over the past 10 years, STEP has also established new export markets in Kazakhstan, the Ukraine, Central Asia, the Middle East, Latin and South America.
May 25th, 2009 at 10:57 AM
Interesting stats Norm. Part of me wonders how competitive Saskatchewan can remain though with rising costs of living that have to be factored into increased wages and subsequent increased prices to market.
As I think about this I look at average sales prices as per the Canadain Real Estate Assocition. As of November of 2007, the average sale price in Saskatchewan was $193,000 compared to Manitoba at $173,000. That’s pretty similar (and far superior to the alberta average of $353,000) and leads me to believe that its just Saskatoon and Regina that are seeing significant inflation. If this is the case, maybe our core economy which is rooted in the resources and in rural Saskatchewan will be fine. Anyway just some random thoughts spurred by your stats.
May 25th, 2009 at 11:01 AM
Hey Doug,
You know, I have no idea what the average was for Saskatchewan last year but I’m under the impression that some of our small communities have also experienced significant pressure. One of my agents was just telling me that prices in Cudworth basically doubled last year.
This story from today’s Star Phoenix.
May 25th, 2009 at 11:03 AM
Norm,
Lemme look at this closer… it looks like from Nov 07-07 Saskatoon prices increased by 53%, Regina by 41% and Saskatchewan as a whole by 48%. It looks like you’re right, we must be up accross the board throughout the province.
http://www.crea.ca/public/news_stats/statistics.htm
Coming back to my original comment: if Saskatchewan wants to remain competitive, the rising cost of living should be a concern to all industries. Especially since our economy is at full employment and if companies want to grow they’ll likely have to attract people here and pay them wages sufficient to buy houses and start a life.
May 25th, 2009 at 11:04 AM
If anyone is interested in athebasca potash you may want to check this out:
http://broadband.bnn.ca/bnn/?id=2238&vid=25698
May 25th, 2009 at 11:04 AM
The “rising cost of living” seems to be less of a problem for those being attracted here as it is for Saskatoon residents who haven’t yet entered the market. Most of the move-ins seem to be coming here with a fair bit of equity which makes housing costs, and incomes less of a factor.
No question that we need to see some income growth if we’re going to grow a healthy first-time buyers market. This is my biggest concern. How do new entrants get in? These people have no equity and generally don’t have the biggest incomes.
May 25th, 2009 at 11:06 AM
Well i hate to see saskatchewan fall into the slum stage like alberta.Companies here bring in immigrants set them up in houses that the company buys.Pays them minimum wage and takes jobs away from canadians.This is the solution for alberta.Jobs and wages go down and housing prices,fuel,food etc rises to the sky.Oh man our country is so screwed up right now,that every one believes they can afford a 300,000 home on flippin equity.When the few high paying jobs die out….well you know the rest of the story.Its going to be ugly!
Quit kidding yourselves the big recession is coming and the only ones who will be working will be the low paying jobs.Enjoy it while you can.
May 25th, 2009 at 11:06 AM
Gojo
This country was built on the backs of immigrants who are usually the only ones desperate enough to do many of the jobs Canadians are unwilling to do. Lots of these companies don’t have a choice as they can’t find enough workers here.
The cycle continues each generation. You can’t honestly say that either your parents or grandparents or great grandparents were not immigrants.
What did they do to make you successful?
May 25th, 2009 at 11:07 AM
Cindy,
Companies do have a choice!But they prefer to pay low wages because there is such an abundance of cheap labour in Canada.Due to rise in immigration.Anyways these poor buggers will never buy a house, you simply cant save money when your living expenses are higher than your earned wages.If you cant understand that then you must be a blonde.So wake up honey and help put a stop to low wage immigration surplus and write to your local mla.
May 25th, 2009 at 11:08 AM
GoJo
A recent report based out of Vancouver on the news sometime over the Christmas holiday showed that usually within 2 years immigrants buy homes. They stay focused on the prize and the big picture. There is a huge need for agriculture workers right now, if you are so concerned, go work for nothing. Economics drives it all – putting a stop to immigration is only going to hurt those small businesses that rely on paying lower wages. Our whole capatalistic society is based on a pyrimid.
FYI I aint your honey and am not blonde but would be extremely offended by your comment if I was