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Published: Wednesday, October 04, 2006
& J* O4 I1 F7 S( |, k7 EEdmonton home prices and sales volumes still are still on the rise but higher inventory and cool weather could calm the market.6 j& T+ d0 e/ p
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September prices averaged $322,077 for single-family houses, and $278,732 for all homes. Those figures are up 48.8 per per cent and 46.3 per cent, respectively, from one year earlier.
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But residential inventory rose to 2,518 units from 2,138 one month earlier. So shoppers can be more patient in searching for the right deal, says Madeline Sarafinchan, president of the Edmonton Real Estate Board.
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0 w0 s0 W J# g3 K$ h. n: Y& }* ?7 bShe expects sales to slow because “people do not like to make a move when it’s cold,” and employers prefer to transfer staff in the spring or summer.
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Sarafinchan does not, however, predict lower prices because demand remains strong. “Consumer spending in Alberta was triple the national average, and migration to the province set new records this year,” she said today.
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Rising demand will not be offset by more new-home construction, she says, because “builders already are beyond their capacity” and cannot hire enough workers.4 ?* ~4 c! ~; e7 T2 E, K
8 d* f& l# C' v* C8 Q" JAlthough sales rose to a September record of 2,160 units, “it appears that the market is slowing slightly,” Sarafinchan says. The average days-on-market, for houses sold during the month, rose to 23 from 20 in August.
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5 X0 r5 O, z a1 X' B9 T9 C$ QAverage price increases over the past year, for single-family homes, have been similar across the city — from 50 per cent in the north central sector to 60 per cent in the northwest.* h) o! e$ `3 d
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The highest house prices are in the southwest, averaging $466,991.2 _' X0 x1 e' G
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The pattern was more varied outside the city with increases ranging from 19 per cent in Sherwood Park to 91 per cent in Morinville.
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Sarafinchan notes that Morinville, 25 kilometres north of Edmonton, is convenient to jobs in the northeast. Even with the extraordinary increase, Morinville house prices, now averaging $288,389, remain lower than those in St. Albert, Fort Saskatchewan, Sherwood Park, Leduc, Spruce Grove and Stony Plain. |
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