Residential sales activity in the area served by the Real Estate Board of the Fredericton Area Inc. was down noticeably in July 2010 compared to last year’s record for the month.
Home sales numbered 183 units in July 2010, down 30 per cent from a year earlier. Sales in all of New Brunswick, by comparison, declined 22 per cent from levels reported last July.
The year-over-year sales decline in July was focused among mid-priced properties.
Sales in the price range $150,000 to $250,000 were down 44 per cent from a year earlier. Meanwhile, transactions priced below $150,000 declined 30 per cent from year-ago levels. In contrast, activity in the range from $250,000 to $350,000 climbed 16 per cent from last July.
The average residential price was $174,007 in July 2010, up seven per cent from a year earlier. Some of the gain can be attributed to the fact that the higher end of the market fared better in July. The average price for home sales in New Brunswick was up five per cent to $159,513 in July.
The value of all residential sales activity in July 2010 amounted to $31.8 million, down 25 per cent from year-ago levels. By comparison, the monthly dollar volume of residential sales in New Brunswick decreased 18 per cent from one year earlier.
Total sales activity numbered 205 units in July, down 29 per cent on a year-over-year basis. The combined value of all property sales totalled $33.4 million, a decrease of 24 per cent from July 2009.
New listings on the Board’s MLS® System numbered 438 units in July 2010, up five per cent from year-ago levels. There were 1,543 active residential listings on the Board’s MLS® System at the end of July 2010, one per cent below the peak for this month reached in 2009. Active listings have now declined for 11 consecutive months, which is helping to maintain a healthy balance of supply and demand in the marketplace.
There were 8.4 months of inventory at the end of July 2010, up from six months at the end of July 2009. The number of months of inventory is the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.
The Real Estate Board of the Fredericton Area Inc. represents 280 agents, salespeople and affiliate members throughout the provincial capital area. The Board serves members through a variety of programs, publications and special services including the Multiple Listing Service®. REALTOR® is a trademark, which identifies real estate professionals who are also members of the Canadian Real Estate Association and, as such, subscribe to a high standard of professional service and to a strict code of ethics.