Calgary Real Estate Board - Calgary MLS® October 2008

Great Deals for Real Estate Bargain Hunters

MLS® sales activity slowed in Calgary during the month of October, but continued to present excellent buying opportunities, according to figures released by the Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB®).

Single family Calgary metro new listings added for the month of October totaled 2,322 a decrease of 10.2% from October 2007 when new listings added totaled 2,586 and a decrease of 11.7% from last month when new listings coming to the market were 2,631.

Calgary metro condominium new listings added in October 2008 were 1,071 showing an decrease of 11.0% from the 1,203 condominium listings added in October 2007 and a decrease of 9.7% from last month's condominium listings of 1,186.

Single family Calgary metro sales for the month of October came in at 820 showing a decrease of 26.3% from the 1,113 sales in October 2007 and showing a decrease of 28.8% from last month's sales of 1,152.

Calgary metro condominium sales in October 2008 were 399, a decrease of 20.4% from the 501 condominium sales recorded in October 2007 and showing a decrease of 14.2% from September 2008 when 465 changed hands.

"Sales have slowed during October partly due to normal seasonal third quarter adjustments. Other factors may be that consumers are feeling a sense of uncertainty at the moment with the volatility of the stock market and the global economy. People are being careful, but being too careful may mean missed opportunities," said CREB® President, Ed Jensen. In a recent Calgary Herald article, Jensen said, "We may be in for some continued slower times for this quarter, but I believe this is the kind of market where real estate bargain hunters can find those great deals, but if you're not out there looking you can't find the best deal. And it's hard to negotiate the best deal when the market has turned the corner and everybody's buying."

The median price of a single family Calgary metro home in October 2008 was $390,000 showing a decrease of 5.5% from October 2007 when the median price was $412,500 and down 1.3% from last month when the median price was $395,000.

All Calgary Metro MLS Statistics include properties listed and sold only within Calgary's City Limits. The median price is the best price that is midway between the least expensive and the most expensive home sold in an area during a given period of time. During that time, half the buyers bought homes that cost more than the median price and half bought homes for less than the median price.

The average price of a single family metro Calgary home in October 2008 was $449,100 showing a decrease of 0.7% from October 2007 when the average price was $452,254, but showing an increase of 1.1% from September's average price of $444,048. The average price of a metro Calgary condominium was $289,148 showing a 12.8% decrease from October 2007 when the average price was $331,617, but again showing a slight increase of 0.6% over last month, when the average price was $287,426.  Average price information can be useful in establishing trends over time, but does not indicate actual prices in centres comprised of widely divergent neighbourhoods or account for price differentials between geographical areas.

The Calgary Real Estate Board is a professional body of 5,474 licensed brokers and registered associates, representing 250 Member offices. The Board does not generate statistics or analysis of any individual member or company's market share. All MLS® active listings for Calgary and area may be found on the Board's website at www.creb.com

Jim English

Your Calgary Real Estate Specialist
For All Your Calgary Real Estate Needs



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