New numbers from the Canadian Real Estate Association show Prince Edward Island’s housing market is starting to cool.
The number of houses sold in November fell 13 per cent, compared to the same period in 2021. James Marjerrison, president of the PEI Real Estate Association, said he’s not surprised by the decrease.
“I don’t find the stats super surprising given the increased interest rate we’ve seen over the last few months,” he said.
“There’s a little apprehension from buyers, they want to see if rates are going to go up or perhaps come down … I think there’s a little bit of hesitation too where people are talking about recession and the state of the economy right now.”
Real estate broker Joel Ives said he’s noticed the drop in sales as well. He said sales were normally slow in the autumn, but said there might be another reason sales were down this year: post-tropical storm Fiona.
“A lot of us didn’t have power, a lot of us had damage, so we were focused on other things than shopping for new houses at that time,” he said.
This decrease in sales is in line with statistics from markets across the country.
What sets PEI apart, however, is that prices are staying high. The benchmark home price rose to $355,000 — an increase of nine per cent over the year before.
Real estate appraiser Tian Wigmore said the benchmark price is being driven by what PEI has to offer, compared to other provinces.
“PEI has a bit less of a curve then than other places,” he said.
“We seem to be able to ride out the storm. We’re quite a resilient province in that way and that’s no different this time around.”
But Wigmore said although the benchmark price is up, year over year, it’s actually lower than it was this summer.
The PEI Real Estate Association said Islanders can expect prices to keep coming down in the new year.