Calgary Real Estate Prices Steadying?
This is a sentiment that has been going through the market lately following a significant drop in activity in October for sales. Technically according to the data prices are stable. We have seen over 25% drops in prices since the peak in July 2007, but have only seen a 5% drop in the past four months. Why is this happening? I think simply many homeowners are giving up selling and will refuse to sell their homes at the lower numbers that the current market is telling them. This is again supported by the data as new listings added in the past four months has dropped 12% and overall inventory has dropped 15%.What is going to happen you ask…the next 60 days will likely continue to see low buying activity as buyers wait out the market troubles and try to gain some confidence in the system. In that same time we predict that inventory levels will continue to drop which will be a positive measure for the market.The other shoe to drop though is if all these people who have taken their homes off the market come back in droves in the new year. My suggestion and quite frankly my hope is that people if they are coming back to the market to sell that they come back in a measured pace as opposed to all at once and flooding the market.My guess is that sellers need to see the market coming back and showing some life before they come back, which would suggest that they will come back in a measured pace.Buyers, don’t blame me when the market starts to rebound in spring and “the deals” that are here to day are getting snapped up, and furthermore if you still wait around until fall 2009 you will find interest rates starting to climb as inflation becomes a concern causing you mortgage payments to come up. I would hate to have to say “I told you so” but the deals that are here now, particularly in the new construction industry, will be fading away.
