Home Sales Set Another Record In November

Local home sales remain well above average in the region, according to the Saint John Real Estate Board.

New figures released by the board show 250 homes changed hands last month, setting a new November sales record.

Corey Breau, president of the board, said the number of newly listed properties could not keep up.

“As a result, overall inventory declined to [the] lowest level on record, falling below 500 active listings,” Breau said in a news release.

With only 192 listings added in November, the number of units on the market at the end of the month stood at 452 units, down 47 per cent year-over-year.

The months of inventory — the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity — numbered 1.8, down from the long-term average of 10.6 months for this time of year.

The average home sale price declined last month to $242,717, according to numbers from the board, but was still up more than 18 per cent year-over-year.

The more comprehensive year-to-date average price was $253,568, up nearly 28 per cent from the first 11 months of 2020.

“As long as the current market conditions persist, we anticipate prices will remain in an elevated state well into 2022,” said Breau.

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.