Sales remain higher than average for typical June in Québec market: QPAREB
The Québec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers (QPAREB) recently released its residential real estate market statistics for June 2023.
The statistics for the Québec City Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) are based on the real estate brokers’ Centris provincial database.
During June 2023, the Québec City CMA reported 744 residential sales, showing a slight decline of 17 transactions, which corresponds to a decrease of just two per cent compared to the same period in 2022. Despite this dip, the level of sales remains notably higher than the historical average for a typical June, according to the QPAREB.
“The Québec City market continues to behave predictably in the face of the latest interest rate hike, i.e., with relative insensitivity, unlike other markets in the province which have been more exposed to a significant inflation in property prices in recent years,” said Charles Brant, QPAREB market analysis director.
“The number of sales is still comparable to the best years for a month of June, which translates into an excellent absorption of the inventory of properties for sale and the maintenance of market conditions favourable to sellers. Despite everything, prices in the Québec City CMA are tending to stabilize, remaining at competitive levels, especially for first-time homebuyers, with the exception of the Northern Periphery. This more linear price trend is helping to stimulate sales and is proving to be a sign of buyer confidence in this market in all property categories.”
Highlights of the June 2023 data include stable transaction activity in the primary metropolitan areas of the Québec City CMA compared to the previous year.
The Agglomeration of Québec City also reported 508 sales in June, representing a three per cent decrease from June 2022. Meanwhile, there was negligible change in sales for the Northern Periphery and South Shore of Québec City, with 90 and 146 sales, respectively, reflecting variations of -1 per cent and 0 per cent.
The decline in sales varied among property categories, with small income properties being the only category to experience a drop in June 2023, with a decline of 34 per cent compared to the same period in the previous year. On the other hand, single-family homes and condominiums saw a resurgence in sales, reaching 471 and 213 sales, respectively, indicating increases of three per cent and one per cent.
Active listings in June 2023 amounted to 2,832, showing a growth of only 19 per cent compared to the previous year. Single-family homes saw a more significant increase in active listings at 31 per cent, while condominiums observed a nine per cent increase. However, listings of plexes experienced an eight per cent decline.
The average selling time for all three property categories was higher than that observed a year ago in the Québec City CMA market. Single-family homes had a selling time of 59 days, and small income properties took 71 days to sell, signifying increases of 28 and 26 days, respectively. The selling time for condominiums (63 days) remained similar to that of the previous June, with a slight variation of one day. These selling times are all comfortably below the historical average for this time of year.
Regarding median prices, plexes in June 2023 had a median price of $405,000, representing a seven per cent increase compared to the same period in the previous year. Condominiums followed with a median price of $245,000, showing a two per cent increase. Lastly, the median price of single-family homes remained stable at $350,000, with a one per cent variation.
On a monthly basis, condominiums and small income properties experienced respective increases of four per cent and eight per cent in their median prices, while the median price of single-family homes saw a slight drop of -2 per cent.