Red Deer home sales continue to trail the pace set in the 2022 bounce-back year.
There have been 524 residential units of all kinds sold through April compared with 744 a year ago — a 42 per cent drop, according to Multiple Listing Service statistics provided by Central Alberta Realtors Association.
Month-over-sales present a similar picture with 181 sales in April, down 32 per cent from 239 in April 2022.
However, average residential prices of all kinds were on the rise at $360,819 compared with 348,134 at the same time last year.
The slowdown is reflected in the entire central Alberta market, which saw total sales drop through four months to 1,391 from 2,143 in 2022.
Last month, there were 477 residential sales, compared with 690 in April 2022.
In its Red Deer market trend summary, the Alberta Real Estate Association (AREA) says the lower sales numbers are “mostly due to pullback in the detached sector.”
Driving that pullback was a lack of good buying options as inventories have fallen to levels not seen since 2007.
Despite the slower year-over-year sales action, sales remain above long-term trend averages and some pre-pandemic years, says AREA.
“Overall, the shifts in the detached market weighed on city-wide figures as the months of supply fell below two months,” says AREA While it is too early to say if conditions will remain this tight, should this persist, we could see more upward pressure on home prices.”
Year-to date home sales in other communities (2022 in brackets):
•Blackfalds — 66 (131)
•Innisfail — 54 (70)
•Lacombe — 65 (118)
•Penhold — 30 (33)
•Ponoka — 23 (29)
•Rocky Mountain House — 42 (70)
•Stettler — 26 (33)
•Sylvan Lake — 142 (218)