The Saskatchewan real estate market continues to build momentum and set another sales record in April. Real estate sales and new listings were both up in Weyburn, along with sales volume.
Across the province, there were 1,865 homes sold (up nearly 182 per cent from last April and up 97.2 per cent year-to-date, going from 2,208 to 3,795), new listings were up over 41 per cent (and up 13.9 per cent year-to-date, going from 2,870 to 5,660) and the MLS® Home Price Index composite was up 10.5 per cent (up 8.2 per cent year-to-date, going from $256,900 to $283,900). Inventories were also down in all 24 markets that the SRA tracks.
“It’s not really fair to compare this April to last April since pandemic restrictions halted activity for part of April last year,” said Chris Gbekorbu, SRA’s Economic Analyst. “But it is fair to compare April with other years, and just like last month, we set another record with 1,865 sales. We saw sales hit a high of 1,801 last July as the economy reopened, but before then, our record was 1,609 sales in May of 2014.”
This strong demand combined with falling inventory levels is putting upward pressure on prices. The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) composite was up in 14 of the 15 markets where these data are available (with Estevan showing a 0.1 per cent decline while Swift Current and Meadow Lake saw the greatest increases), while the number of sales were up in all 24 markets.
Sales were up in Weyburn (going from 4 to 12), and up 243.8 per cent in the overall region, going from 16 to 55. Sales were 4.8 per cent below the five-year average (and 16.1 per cent below the 10-year average) in Weyburn, while in the larger region, sales were 32.2 per cent above the 5-year average (and 14.3 per cent above the 10-year average). Year-to-date (YTD) sales rose 70.8 per cent in Weyburn (going from 24 to 41), and rose 94.1 per cent in the larger region, going from 101 to 196.
Sales volume was up 344 per cent in Weyburn, going from $0.7M to $3.1M (4.5 per cent above the five-year average, and 18.8 per cent below the 10-year average). In the region, sales volume was up 263.8 per cent, going from $2.8M to $10.4M (28.5 per cent above the five-year average, and 7.6 per cent below the 10-year average). YTD sales volume was $11M in Weyburn, an increase of 115.4 per cent, and was $40.3M in the larger region (an increase of 125.9 per cent from last year).
The number of new listings in April 2021 rose 73.3 per cent in Weyburn, going from 15 last year to 26 (15.6 per cent below the five-year average and 27.2 per cent below the 10-year average). In the region, new listings rose 87.9 per cent, going from 66 last year to 124 this year (4.9 per cent below the five-year average and 10.3 per cent below the 10-year average). YTD new listings rose 16.3 per cent in Weyburn, going from 22 to 25, while in the larger region, the number of new listings to date rose 30.2 per cent, going from 88 to 114. Active listings fell fell 10.3 per cent in Weyburn (down from 156 to 140), and fell 9.1 per cent in the region (down from 739 to 672).
Inventory in Weyburn stood at 11.7 months (which is 70.1 per cent below the level last year and 9.6 per cent below the five-year average), while the sales to listing ratio was 46.2 per cent, suggesting balanced market conditions. Inventory in the larger region stood at 12.2 months (which is 73.5 per cent below the level last year and 33.2 per cent below the 5-year average), while the sales to listing ratio was 44.4 per cent, suggesting balanced market conditions.
Homes in Weyburn stayed on the market an average of 129 days in April, up 19.4 per cent from 108 days last year (and above the five-year average of 124 days and above the 10-year average of 109 days). Homes in the region stayed on the market for 120 days on average in 2021, but up from an average of 111 days last year (and 1.7 per cent above the five-year average).
The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI)—a more accurate measure of house price trends—varied across different centres in the region. The price of the benchmark single family home in Weyburn rose 5.1 per cent (going from $214,500 to $225,400).
