Home sales dive 41% compared to May 2019

Area house sales increased more than 50 per cent in May from last month but continue to struggle year-over-year, according to the latest figures from the Realtors Association of Edmonton (RAE).

Total residential unit sales in the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) real estate market in May 2020 decreased by 41.5 per cent from 2019, says the RAE’S latest data released Tuesday. Single-family home sales were down 38.7 per cent from last year as well as condos at 54.4 per cent.

Both single-family homes and condo sales did see a bump monthto-month in May, 60 per cent and 28.1 per cent, respectively.

Association chairwoman Jennifer Lucas said in a news release that given the impacts of the COVID -19 pandemic, the significant decreases year-over-year isn’t surprising.

“There have been significantly fewer sales of single-family homes, condos and duplexes than in May of last year, ” she said. “Residential unit sales in May rose sharply relative to April. With COVID-19 restrictions slowly being lifted, I am cautiously optimistic that the market may be starting to move back toward normalized levels of activity. It is too early to draw any definitive conclusions but we will be monitoring developments closely.”

A single-family home sold for an average of about $412,000, a 4.4 per cent year-over-year decrease and a 0.5 per cent increase from April. The average price for a condominium was about $204,300, a 14.2 per cent increase from last year and an 8.7 per cent from last month.

Duplex prices also dropped 2.82 per cent from May 2019, selling at roughly $325,250, which was a 1.38 per cent decrease from April.