Housing costs soar, but relief on horizon

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This article was published 13/07/2022 (1468 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The average Winnipeg home’s cost jumped 11.5 per cent this spring compared to last, according to a new Royal LePage report.

“We’ve got such a housing shortage in this country,” said Phil Soper, the real estate company’s president and CEO. “We’ve backed ourselves into (this) position.”

Winnipeg residents paid an average $392,600 for their houses in April through June, Royal LePage’s House Price Survey showed. The average was $352,000 during the same timeframe in 2021.

However, more houses are being listed, and demand has cooled for the summer, said Elliot Didomenicantonio, a Winnipeg-based broker for Royal LePage.

“With everything opening up in Winnipeg… (and) the COVID numbers dropping, I think that had a little bit to do with it,” Didomenicantonio said.

The city’s housing prices increased 1.2 per cent from the previous quarter.

Royal LePage forecasts costs will continue to climb: Winnipeg may see an eight per cent increase in its average house price — to $385,776 — by the end of 2022 (when compared to last year).

Soper points to a lack of housing. High levels of employment and dual-income families mean there’s constantly buyers, he said.

“Even if one spouse does lose their job, they still have someone else who can pay the mortgage,” he said. “That encourages them to stay in the market.”

The Bank of Canada’s interest rate increases may have slowed demand, but people will still buy, Soper said — life continues, with marriages and graduations and other reasons for home purchases.

“There’s a little more breathing room for buyers,” Didomenicantonio noted. “There’s now five houses in their area as opposed to one that they’re looking at.”

Manitoba residents listed 3,477 houses in June, according to Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board data.

It means fewer bidding wars and more opportunities for people to find homes with the features they desire, Didomenicantonio said.

He expects a bump in house sales in the fall, as is typical for the market. Clients are getting interest rate pre-approvals before searching.

“(Then) they have that 90 to 100 day period where they can go and find houses,” Didomenicantonio said.

The Bank of Canada is scheduled to make another interest rate announcement Wednesday.

The average Winnipeg single-family home cost $433,300 last quarter, up 10.9 per cent year-over-year. Condos’ median price was $252,900.

Still, Winnipeg is among the cheapest of Canada’s larger cities. Soper calls it a “Goldilocks city”.

“It’s typically not too hot, not too cold,” Soper said. “Prices don’t rise too rapidly. They also don’t have the spikes that you see in a Vancouver (or elsewhere).”

Nationally, the average home cost $815,000 — a 12.1 per cent boost from 2021’s second quarter, but a 4.9 per cent drop from 2022’s first quarter.

An average home in Calgary cost $616,300. Saskatoon was more expensive than Winnipeg, at a house price of $406,500 last quarter.

West Vancouver had the highest-priced homes — the second quarter average was $2,850,900.

National home prices are expected to rise five per cent, year-over-year, by the end of 2022, according to Royal LePage. It’s lower than Winnipeg’s projected eight per cent increase.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com