Selena’s July 2023 Newsletter

July got off to a great start. How was your Canada Day? For us it has been so extremely busy that we are already half way through July before I have time to write my newsletter. It could be because the Bank of Canada raised interest again. Only by 1/4 point this time and perhaps the last increase for some time but we assume it is those pre-qualified buyers wanting to buy something while they still have a better rate.

Not just half way through July, we are half way through the year. In the below graph you can see the average price is still above 2021 levels, and that was a pretty crazy year if you remember. It is below 2022 numbers which is not unreasonable given the Bank of Canada has been raising interest rate through out this whole time in an effort to cool the market, and given we can see the graph starting to curve over it would appear they have succeeded. It looks like our market peaked in May and historically, May is the best time to list a home for sale in Edmonton because the grass is green and the prices are highest. How the rest of the summer fares requires dusting off the crystal ball making an educated guess. Given the amount of jobs, immigration and in-migration, we still expect to see a strong finish to the year even if it does swing from seller’s market to balanced market but either way it does confirm our view that the best looking homes sell first and for the best prices.