Activity slows in line with typical seasonal trends

• By Mike Heddle
• Posted Friday, Dec 06, 2024 12:51 pm

Activity slows in line with typical seasonal trends

Modest year-over-year gain in sales

Hamilton, ON (December 4, 2024) — Sales, new listings and inventory levels all trended down over October levels, which aligns with typical seasonal behaviour. However, sales did see modest gains over last November. Year-over-year gains occurred in all regions, but only Haldimand County reported sales above long-term trends.

"Many potential purchasers defer purchasing decisions this time of year until the new year. With recent interest rate cuts, we expect buyers will be incentivized to enter the market in 2025. The recent easing of mortgage restrictions and Bank of Canada cuts are making purchasing more attainable for hopeful buyers," says Nicolas von Bredow, Cornerstone spokesperson for the Hamilton-Burlington market area.

New listings trended down both over last month and last year's levels. Despite the pullback, levels were high enough relative to sales to prevent any significant adjustment in inventory levels. With four months of supply, we are still seeing elevated supply levels compared to recent years. The unadjusted benchmark price was $817,900 in November, similar to last month and nearly two per cent higher than last year, when prices reported higher declines. Despite some adjustments throughout the year, year-to-date prices are less than one per cent lower than last year's levels.