Niagara Association of REALTORS®

The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the Niagara Association of REALTORS® (NAR) totaled 531 units in August 2024. This was down by 7.2% from August 2023.

Home sales were 23.4% below the five-year average and 26.1% below the 10-year average for the month of August.

On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 4,579 units over the first eight months of the year. This was a minor decrease of 1.7% from the same period in 2023.

“Sales activity was muted while new listings posted a very strong showing in August, as the majority of buyers are still shying away from returning to the market and sellers are having difficulties meeting the price expectations of those who are still actively looking,” said Nathan Morrissette, President of the Niagara Association of REALTORS® (NAR). “On a separate note, a recent report endorsed by the Niagara Region’s planning and economic development committee stated that Niagara must double the number of apartments in the next 30 years to meet demand, as changing demographic trends add to existing supply challenges.”

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 $640,200 in August 2024, falling by 3.3% compared to August 2023.

The benchmark price for single-family homes was $655,300, a modest decline of 3.1% on a year-over-year basis in August. By comparison, the benchmark price for townhouse/row units was $616,500, down modestly by 2.3% compared to a year earlier, while the benchmark apartment price was $432,200, a decrease of 7.6% from year-ago levels.

The average price of homes sold in August 2024 was $701,531, a small gain of 1.9% from August 2023.

The more comprehensive year-to-date average price was $695,733, decreasing by 1% from the first eight months of 2023.

The dollar value of all home sales in August 2024 was $372.5 million, a decline of 5.4% from the same month in 2023.

The number of new listings was down modestly by 3.2% from August 2023. There were 1,302 new residential listings in August 2024.

New listings were 7.6% above the five-year average and 14% above the 10-year average for the month of August.

Active residential listings numbered 2,920 units on the market at the end of August, an increase of 13.8% from the end of August 2023. Active listings haven’t been this high in the month of August in more than a decade.

Active listings were 44.9% above the five-year average and 45.6% above the 10-year average for the month of August.

Months of inventory numbered 5.5 at the end of August 2024, up from the 4.5 months recorded at the end of August 2023 and above the long-run average of 3.1 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.