Lower demand and higher condo fees are scaring off potential buyers
While Winnipeg has shown strong indicators of having bounced back, the region’s condo segment is not attracting the same level of demand as it does elsewhere in Canada, according to the latest analysis by Royal LePage.
“Condominium inventory has been rising throughout 2018,” Royal LePage Prime Real Estate managing partner Michael Froese said.
“Last year we saw a large number of housing starts. Demand hasn’t been strong enough to keep up as those units come onto the market, and this has caused some downward pressure on condo prices.”
In addition, the increase in condo fees in several projects – which resulted from the new requirement for projects to be subjected to reserve fund studies – have pushed away some potential buyers, and affected the purchasing power of others.
This is despite the median price of a condominium declining by 2.1% year-over-year in Q3 2018, down to $240,933.
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During the same time frame, the aggregate price of a two-storey home grew by 5.7% to $337,424, while bungalows had a 1.6% increase to $293,387.
Across all property types, the aggregate home price in Winnipeg rose by 3.3% to $309,101.
Overall, however, “Winnipeg’s housing market has been very resilient, buoyed by the region’s stable and diverse economy,” Froese assured.
“Inventory has crept higher, and sales activity has fallen slightly from the strong 2017 market, but home prices have remained steady. The market is relatively affordable across a wide variety of housing types, which is a positive environment for buyers.”
