Market Review: Q1 2024
As usual, the first quarter (January through March) is the slowest of the year in Yellowknife, and while this year’s numbers don’t point to huge changes in our market, there are some smaller changes worth talking about.
We had 37 MLS sales from January 1 to March 31, which is up by 1 sale over the first quarter last year. The median average sale price was up to $465,000 from $395,000, but this more a reflection of a skewed sales mix than actual price appreciation – last year the 36 sales included more small-format homes than this year (condos, single-wide modulars, etc.) As I’ve mentioned in the past in these market analysis posts, our calculations of average price are not as helpful as they are in larger markets, because here we have little choice but to compare apples to oranges. This problem is most acute during the first quarter of the year, because it’s the slowest quarter and the sample size is therefore very small.
About the most helpful thing we can tell you based on our Q1 stats is that inventory levels are up pretty significantly compared to the past three years. At the end of March, there were 41 listings on the market. The peak for all of last year was only 53 listings, and you can see from the attached graph that we are already above the peak for all of 2021.
For some perspective, it is worth mentioning that we’re nowhere close to the 82 units we had at end of March 2020. Back then we had new construction adding inventory to the market, which is something we haven’t had since. Nonetheless, buyers have more choice this year than they’ve had for a few years.
One other useful thing we can tell you is there there seems to be a dividing line at about $650,000 in terms of how quickly homes sell. In Q1 of 2024, the average time to sell a home was 42 days. But homes priced below $650,000 sold within 28 days while homes priced above $650,000 took three times longer to sell – 92 days. And that’s just the homes that have sold – we’ve got some active listings around town that have been on the market for 250-350 days. Just a reminder to make sure you get your pricing right. If your Realtor cannot make – or does not even try to make – a compelling argument based on comparable sales for why you should list at a certain price, you should consider using a different Realtor. The last thing you want is to find yourself sliding down the slippery slope of price drops, because there is no telling how far below the correct sale price you’ll end up.
If you’re selling in 2024, don’t hesitate to reach out to a member of our team – we’re great at capturing the full potential value of our client’s homes!
