Nova Scotia MLS® home sales start to build momentum in March
The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the Nova Scotia Association of REALTORS® totaled 792 units in March 2024. This increased by 10.2% from March 2023.
Home sales were 25.2% below the five-year average and 13% below the 10-year average for the month of March.
On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 1,983 units over the first three months of the year. This was a gain of 10.5% from the same period in 2023.
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 $402,200 in March 2024, up by 4.8% compared to March 2023.
The benchmark price for single-family homes was $396,300, an increase of 4.9% on a year-over-year basis in March. By comparison, the benchmark price for townhouse/row units was $509,800, a moderate gain of 9.3% compared to a year earlier, while the benchmark apartment price was $439,000, increasing by 1.3% from year-ago levels.
The average price of homes sold in March 2024 was $443,771, up by 9.7% from March 2023.
The more comprehensive year-to-date average price was $431,817, an increase of 8.8% from the first three months of 2023.
The dollar value of all home sales in March 2024 was $351.5 million, a sizable gain of 20.8% from the same month in 2023.
The number of new listings decreased by 3.8% from March 2023. There were 1,202 new residential listings in March 2024. This was the lowest number of new listings added in the month of March in more than 35 years.
New listings were 19.3% below the five-year average and 25.3% below the 10-year average for the month of March.
Active residential listings numbered 3,103 units on the market at the end of March, a gain of 19.8% from the end of March 2023.
Active listings were 6.9% above the five-year average and 41.4% below the 10-year average for the month of March.
Months of inventory numbered 3.9 at the end of March 2024, up from the 3.6 months recorded at the end of March 2023 and below the long-run average of 6.7 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.
BOARD & ASSOCIATION INFORMATION
Trademarks are owned or controlled by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify real estate professionals who are members of CREA (REALTOR®) and/or the quality of services they provide (MLS®).
NSAR represents more than 1,600 brokers, salespeople and affiliate (e.g. solicitors, appraisers, banks) members throughout the province. The Association serves its members through a wide variety of educational programs, publications and special services with the vision that learning and sharing real estate knowledge will help the profession advance. Through an agreement with the Nova Scotia Real Estate Commission, NSAR provides all real estate licensing courses in the province. REALTOR® is a trademark, which identifies real estate professionals who are members of The Canadian Real Estate Association and, as such, subscribe to a high standard of professional service and a strict Code of Ethics.
For more information,
please contact:
Tanya White
(902) 468-5874 or 1 (800) 344-2001
twhite@nsar.ns.ca
Matthew Dauphinee
