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The sales stats at the end of April 2020 indicate the market is way down this year as compared to last year at the same time. The COVID-19 has had a big impact on unit sales. Prices seem to be holding their own, but unit sales are way down as compared to April 2019. The lock-down has really affected the number of active buyer’s in the marketplace.
Unit sales of single-family homes are down by 47% as compared to April 2019. However, prices continue to rise in all property types except for lots and condos. The average sale price for single family homes was up by 1%, Apartment style condos down by 12%, patio homes up by 3% and townhouses up by 23% as compared to March 2019.
Based on the stats that VIREB (Vancouver Island Real Estate Board) have supplied, I am able to summarize the market as follows:
Below are the types of real estate sold in April 2020(source VIREB) in Nanaimo:
| Property Type | # of sold unit’s | Average price |
|---|---|---|
| Single Family | 55 | $593,503 |
| Condo (Apt) | 9 | $261,167 |
| Condo (Patio) | 1 | $460,000 |
| Condo (Townhouse) | 7 | $441,506 |
| Lots | 11 | $253,455 |
The average single-family home was taking 16% fewer days to sell than in April 2019.
The Sell/List ratio is the percentage of houses that were listed that sold. In April 2020, the Sell/List ratio was 57% which was the same as April 2019.
Sales of apartment style condos was down by 68% from April 2019 and were taking 12% more days to sell than in April 2019. In April 2020, the average sales price was 12% lower than in April 2019.
Sales of townhouse units were down by 59% from April 2019. They were taking 23% fewer days to sell, and the average sale price was 23% higher in April 2020 than in April 2019.
The sales of patio homes were down by 86% in April 2020 as compared to April 2019. The average sale price for patio homes was 3% higher in April 2020 as compared to April 2019.
Overall, the market in April 2020 was down. However, prices continue to rise in all property types year-to-date except for lots.
Absorption Rates for single family homes in April 2020 as compared to April 2019
The above stats are informative but to get a true picture of how the local market is doing we need to calculate absorption rates. The definition of absorption rates is the number of weeks it takes to sell the current real estate inventory in Nanaimo at the present rate of sales.
Below you will find a comparison between absorption rates this year versus last year.
The absorption rate for single family homes in Nanaimo as at April 30, 2020 compared to April 30, 2019
April 30, 2020 – 21.43 weeks to sell the inventory that was currently on hand at the end of April.
April 30, 2019 – 14.04 weeks to sell the inventory that was currently on hand at the end of April.
As a rule of thumb, a Sellers market has less than 3 months of inventory, a Balanced market has between 3-6 months of inventory and a Buyer’s market has over 6 months.
The absorption rate indicates that we are still experiencing a balanced market but just barely.
Time will tell whether we remain steady in a balanced market or slip into a Buyer’s market.
A Balanced market is just that; a market where there are a similar number of buyer’s looking to buy real estate as there are sellers hoping to sell.
For additional information on the Nanaimo real estate market please give me a call.
