New Brunswick Real Estate Board

The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the New Brunswick Real Estate Board totaled 978 units in May 2024. This was down by 5% from May 2023.

Home sales were 7.9% below the five-year average and 1% below the 10-year average for the month of May.

On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 3,601 units over the first five months of the year. This was a minor increase of 2.8% from the same period in 2023.

At the local level home sales activity posted an increase in Fredericton (2.6%) and recorded declines in Saint John (-2.9%), Northern and Valley Regions (-3.8%), and Greater Moncton (-11.7%) on a year-over-year basis.

“Although sales totals were down slightly compared to last year, MLS® listed homes saw an increase for the fifth consecutive month in May. The number of newly listed properties surged, reaching the highest single month total since June 2022. Consequently, the number of active listings rose to levels not seen since fall 2022,” said Mike Power, Chair of the New Brunswick Real Estate Board. “All factors considered, the 2024 spring season, although softer than last year, has so far been quite active. Market conditions remained slightly favourable to sellers, and with the Bank of Canada’s rate announcement in early June, there is currently no indication that this trend will change in the near future.”

The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) tracks price trends far more accurately than is possible using average or median price measures. The overall MLS® HPI composite benchmark price was $306,600 in May 2024, a gain of 10.5% compared to May 2023.

The benchmark price for single-family homes was $307,200, up by 10.5% on a year-over-year basis in May. By comparison, the benchmark price for townhouse/row units was $289,500, an increase of 13.8% compared to a year earlier, while the benchmark apartment price was $282,400, a gain of 13.1% from year-ago levels.

The dollar value of all home sales in May 2024 was $331.3 million, a modest increase of 2.7% from the same month in 2023.

The number of new listings rose by 11.7% from May 2023. There were 1,652 new residential listings in May 2024.

New listings were 6.3% above the five-year average and 5% below the 10-year average for the month of May.

Active residential listings numbered 3,084 units on the market at the end of May, an increase of 10.7% from the end of May 2023.

Active listings were 0.7% below the five-year average and 39.7% below the 10-year average for the month of May.

Months of inventory numbered 3.2 at the end of May 2024, up from the 2.7 months recorded at the end of May 2023 and below the long-run average of 5.6 months for this time of year. 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.