Saint John Sets Home Sales Record

July was a record-setting month for home sales across Canada, and it was no different in the Saint John region.

New numbers released by the Saint John Real Estate Board (SJREB) show 284 homes were sold over the month, an increase of 13.6 per cent year-over-year.

“July sales numbers reached not only the best level on record for this particular month but also shattered the all-time monthly record in the process,” said Corey Breau, president of SJREB, in a statement.

So far this year, a total of 1,343 homes have sold in the Saint John region, an increase of 3.1 per cent from 2019.

As sales numbers hit record levels, Breau said new listings are also on the rise and are beginning to approach pre-COVID levels.

There were 368 new residential listings in July, down 6.4 per cent year-over-year but well above the low numbers seen in April.

“The balance between demand and supply remains historically tight and the market is very much in seller’s territory,” said Breau in a statement.

There were 949 active residential listings at the end of July, which was 39.5 per cent lower than at this time last year.

The imbalance between demand and supply helped push the average price of homes sales in July to a record $202,297, the second month in a row the average price breached $200,000.

The year-to-date average price, which is seen as more comprehensive, was six per cent higher year-over-year at $191,158.

Months of inventory — the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity — numbered 3.3 at the end of July, well below the long-run average of 10.2 months for this time of year.

The Saint John Real Estate Board covers the southern part of New Brunswick to the U.S. border in St. Stephen, and includes the counties of Saint John, Kings, Charlotte and portions of Queens County.