Sarnia-Lambton Association of REALTORS®

Record new listings during May create opportunities for buyers in Sarnia-Lambton

The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the Sarnia-Lambton Association of REALTORS® totaled 154 units in May 2026. This was a decline of 14% from May 2025.

Home sales were 9% below the five-year average and 14.3% below the 10-year average for the month of May.

On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 569 units over the first five months of the year. This was a decrease of 12.5% from the same period in 2025.

“May brought a modest improvement in sales over April, but activity remained well below May 2025 levels and considerably below the long-term averages for the month. In fact, this was the lowest May sales total since 2020. The number of newly listed homes continued to rise, reaching the highest May total on record and the largest single month total for new supply since 1991,” said Jeremy Guerette, President of the Sarnia-Lambton Association of REALTORS®. “With newly listed properties outpacing sales by a wide margin, overall inventory climbed to its highest level since September 2025 remaining well above what we would expect for this time of year. For those prepared to make a move, this is a good time to find great properties at reasonable prices. A trusted local REALTOR® can help potential buyers identify value and help sellers position their property effectively in this competitive environment.”

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/single-family benchmark price was $497,100 in May 2026, falling by 2.5% compared to May 2025.

The average price of homes sold in May 2026 was $558,509, up modestly by 2.7% from May 2025.

The more comprehensive year-to-date average price was $516,379, a minor decrease of 2.5% from the first five months of 2025.

The dollar value of all home sales in May 2026 was $86 million, a reduction of 11.6% from the same month in 2025.

The number of new listings rose 7.9% from May 2025. There were 368 new residential listings in May 2026. This was the largest number of new listings added in the month of May in 45 years.

New listings were 15.2% above the five-year average and 34% above the 10-year average for the month of May.

Active residential listings numbered 637 units on the market at the end of May, a modest gain of 2.7% from the end of May 2025. Active listings haven’t been this high in the month of May in more than a decade.

Active listings were 32.6% above the five-year average and 77.4% above the 10-year average for the month of May.

Months of inventory numbered 4.1 at the end of May 2026, up from the 3.5 months recorded at the end of May 2025 and above the long-run average of 2.1 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

The Sarnia-Lambton Association of REALTORS®, established in 1944, is a non-profit organization. The County of Lambton, of which Sarnia is the principal city, is bounded on the North and West by the crystal blue waters of Lake Huron and the St. Clair River. The REALTOR® and MLS® 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®).