Real estate trends and statistics are an important measure of the current health and state of the real estate market. Knowing the fluctuating of real estate trends and statistics can help realtors, homeowners, and investors make better and more informed financial and marketing decisions. Alberta as a province has seen years of recession, which has altered real estate values and the number of transactions taking place. Let's take a closer look at the current Alberta real estate trends and stats for Calgary, Edmonton, and Lethbridge. Before we get into specifics, it's important to know the outside factors that have heavily influenced the current trends and statistics in these markets. Falling oil prices and growing concerns regarding the economy have definitely impacted resale markets, while sales have shown pullback compared to previous years due to increasing economic concerns. After some market corrections, Alberta is starting to see trends that look more favorable, hopefully leading to an uptick in the economy and real estate values.
Calgary
In Calgary, there was a serious decline in overall trends and sales; in fact, Calgary saw the largest annual decline in the Alberta region in 2018, with a total 14% decline in sales. Despite this decline in actual sales, the amount of inventory in the Calgary market is higher than ever before–in fact, it is at the highest level it has been since 2008. This has led to oversaturation and oversupply in a market that is showing declining sales as a solid trend. Experts note that the unemployment levels in Calgary are likely to have significantly impacted sales, despite the price declines in the third and fourth quarter of 2018.
Edmonton
In Edmonton, there was a decline in overall trends and sales; this was heavily influenced by increasing concerns in the energy sector which created a double-digit sales decline during the fourth quarter of 2018. The total sales in 2018 in Edmonton were about 5% below 2017 levels and 5% below long-term trends in the area. Despite this, the annual sales in Edmonton did not fall too much below the long-term trends– In the early part of 2019, Edmonton has seen an increasing amount of new listings. This is leading to oversupply and higher inventory than in previous years. The increase of real estate supply is leading to a decrease in prices, as competitors attempt to increase sales with downward pressure on pricing.
Lethbridge
In Lethbridge, sales in 2018 eased by about 3% from the statistics shown in 2017. Despite this easement, they remained similar to longer-term trends, especially when compared to other markets which saw more drastic drops below the long-term trends. In Lethbridge, inventories are increasingly higher; in 2018 alone, the inventories were about 1,456 on average, placing them 18% higher than the inventories shown in 2017. This has increased downward pricing pressure for investors and real estate marketers attempting to make more sales due to increasing inventory combined with the sliding sales statistics. It is important for buyers, realtors, and investors in the real estate market to have a firm grasp on the 2018 trends that will continue to impact the real estate market well into 2019. These continued trends and statistics are necessary for making informed decisions regarding when to buy, sell and what types of properties to keep on inventory in a market that is currently facing increasing pricing pressure and higher inventories.
