A $2.2 million home was sold on an acreage outside Red Deer — the highest priced house sale in the region in at least seven years, according to the local real estate agent.
Dale Devereaux, of Century 21 Maximum, said he’s been selling properties for 30-some years and this home in Red Deer County is the most expensive home he’s ever sold.
“I’ve been looking at the listings in Red Deer or the county and I haven’t found one” that hit that price level, without being attached to a lot of land, said Devereaux.
He looked back to 2015 for luxury estate home listings from $1.75 million and up in Red Deer and in country residential zones in Red Deer County. According to MLS, there were five luxury estate home sales since then and only one that sold above $2 million — which was the recent sale by Devereaux.
The house is located within a five-minute drive from Red Deer, with a “spectacular” view of the parkland and the city. It’s a 3,307 sq ft walk-out bungalow with an attached garage that can accommodate up to 12 vehicles. The Red Deer Advocate has agreed to not identify the exact location of the house due to privacy concerns.
Devereaux believes this sale bodes well for the higher-end home market in the area.
Typically, local house sales have been stronger for properties in the $300,000 to $500,000 range. But Devereaux noted “You need houses in the lower ranges to sell first so that people are moving up into the higher ranges.”
The real estate market in Central Alberta has been solid since the first months of 2021. “January to June was the best in 11 years,” said Devereaux, who added this first sales increase in a decade, signals “a major change.”
Related:
-Red Deer housing market not cooling off
House sales escalated last spring when home buyers were forewarned that banks would be applying more stringent mortgage qualifying rules after June 1. However, Devereaux believes sales have also been “pretty good” since June — although the number of listings has recently fallen, showing the usual drop off before Christmas.
According to the Alberta Real Estate Association, home prices are “far higher” than last year. Average prices in the city have increased by over eight percent so far this year. The average price for a detached home is now $388,564, representing a near recovery from previous highs.
See also:
-Central Alberta real estate market is hot in 2021
The association stated on its website: “More normal levels of supply and demand have brought the market back into more balanced conditions. This is also starting to slow the upward pressure on prices.”
Most residential sales in Red Deer are in the $300,000 to $399,000 range, and are about a third higher than in 2020 for the month of October.
However, about twice as many homes sold in the $500,000 to $699,000 range this year, compared to 2020. Also, four properties sold in the $700,000 to $999,999 range in 2021, while virtually no homes went for that high last year.
Although the pandemic is unpredictable, Devereaux is confident that 2022 will be an even healthier year.
lmichelin@reddeeradvocate.com
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