Despite the high a number of homes on the market, many buyers remained reluctant to pull the trigger last month.
According to the Chatham-Kent Association of Realtors, 117 homes changed hands in May 2024, a 14.6 per cent decrease compared to May 2023. This was also 13.1 per cent below the five-year average and 19.5 per cent below the 10-year average for the month of May.
“After rising modestly earlier in the spring demand has tapered off as we near the summer months,” said association President Carrie Patrick in a news release. “Although sellers are still out in stronger numbers than almost ever, buyers have decided once again to retreat to the sidelines despite accelerating levels of inventory and prices roughly back on par with where they stood three years ago.”
There were 273 new homes listed for sale last month, which was the highest number of new listings added in the month of May in a decade. As well, there were 474 residential listings on the market at the end of last month, a jump of 26.4 per cent compared to the same time last year.
“There’s plenty of choice and good deals to be had as our market flirts with buyer’s territory but it seems they are still holding back their purchasing decisions for the time being,” said Patrick.
The average price of homes sold in May 2024 was $427,636, a slight reduction of 0.4 per cent from May 2023. The year-to-date average price was $422,937, edging down 0.2 per cent from the first five months of 2023.
