Sarnia-Lambton Association of REALTORS®

The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the Sarnia-Lambton Association of REALTORS® totaled 143 units in July 2024. This was an increase of 15.3% from July 2023.

Home sales were 7.9% below the five-year average and 15.7% below the 10-year average for the month of July.

On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 922 units over the first seven months of the year. This was a small reduction of 1.7% from the same period in 2023.

“Sales remained stable in July, continuing the trend we have seen for the past few summers. The number of newly listed properties outpaced sales by a 2:1 margin which would normally appear as an increase in overall inventory. However, we did not see this in July, with active listings remaining relatively unchanged from the past few months," said Jeremy Guerette, President of the Sarnia-Lambton Association of REALTORS®. “Even with the additional quarter-point drop in interest rates in July, buyers continued to stay on the sidelines. It is reasonable to expect this will continue in August as the Bank of Canada will again consider whether to reduce rates further in September. With balanced market conditions and plenty of inventory, opportunities are available for buyers willing to step into the market. To identify the right opportunity, we recommend working with a REALTOR® as they will provide valuable insights and can help find a home that fits a buyer’s specific needs.”

The average price of homes sold in July 2024 was $503,634, a decline of 12.6% from July 2023.

The more comprehensive year-to-date average price was $528,340, a modest decline of 1.7% from the first seven months of 2023.

The dollar value of all home sales in July 2024 was $72 million, nearly unchanged, up only 0.7% from the same month in 2023.

The number of new listings saw an increase of 16.8% from July 2023. There were 285 new residential listings in July 2024. This was the largest number of new listings added in the month of July in more than 25 years.

New listings were 21.4% above the five-year average and 22.1% above the 10-year average for the month of July.

Active residential listings numbered 574 units on the market at the end of July, a jump of 37.6% from the end of July 2023. Active listings haven’t been this high in the month of July in more than five years.

Active listings were 68.9% above the five-year average and 58.9% above the 10-year average for the month of July.

Months of inventory numbered 4 at the end of July 2024, up from the 3.4 months recorded at the end of July 2023 and above the long-run average of 2.2 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.