Canada’s MLS ® housing market balance stabilizes in third quarter

CREA- The number of properties listed via the MLS® systems of Canada’s major markets was down from its peak in the third quarter of 2008, according to statistics released by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). This caused the balance of sales-to-new-listings in the market for resale homes to tighten on a quarter-over-quarter basis for the first time since the beginning of 2007.

New MLS® residential listings in Canada’s major markets numbered 146,637 units on a seasonally adjusted basis in the third quarter of 2008. This is 3.3 per cent below the highest level on record, set the previous quarter. New listings eased most in Edmonton and Calgary in the third quarter, followed by declines in Vancouver and Montreal.

The balance between sales and new listings has stabilized in many major resale housing markets in recent months. The trend stands out most in Edmonton and Calgary, where a sharp drop in new listings and rising sales activity has firmed up the resale housing market considerably since the beginning of the year.

"Informed buyers and informed sellers look at the facts. And the facts right now indicate the real estate resale market is stabilizing in many markets," says Calvin Lindberg, the President of The Canadian Real Estate Association.

"There have also been a number of initiatives that will have an impact going forward, including the government’s decision to invest $25 billion in insured mortgage pools, the recent drop in the Bank of Canada rate, and the new rules reducing the maximum amortization to 35 years instead of 40," the CREA President adds. Those new mortgage rules go into effect October 15th. "The third quarter MLS® statistics and these developments are more factors showing the Canadian market is not following U.S. housing trends."

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While the article talks about the national trending, doom and gloom from the stock market is creating visible hesitation in the financial market place. These figures translated into an adjusted value for average homes sold in Ontario as being slightly over the 2007 to 2008 figures, 289K V 291K.