Housing starts in the month of January 2009 were down significantly from 2008 according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp (CMHC). New construction is down 69% from last year with only 21 single-detached homes in the Saskatoon area and only 12 multi-family units down from 134 multi-family starts in January 2008.
Paul Caton, CMHCs senior market analyst for Saskatchewan, states that Saskatoon housing starts are likely to be down for the bulk of the year for 2 reasons. The first is the high level of inventory already on the market causing Saskatoon home builders to hold back until demand for new homes rises. The other very important factor to consider is that the housing starts in Saskatoon for the entire year of 2009 will be compared to the robust starts of 2008. The year 2008 saw record breaking construction starts in Saskatoon so this throws off our statistics. If we are to compare 2009 with 2006/2007 we will see that the Saskatoon housing market is still strong. So while it appears like a decline when compared to 2008, it is actually still very strong.
At the end of January we did see 1156 houses for sale in the city of Saskatoon. The average price for a home in Saskatoon in January was $278,645. This is up from January, 2008 despite a slow fall. From the month of January until February 10th we have seen 308 firm sales or conditional sales in Saskatoon and even more in the surrounding areas.
There are still a lot of homes for sale in Saskatoon and a lot to choose from which means it is still a buyers market, but a lot of the product that had been sitting for months is now selling. Combined with the ultra low interest rates and the abundance of product now is a great time to buy a house in Saskatoon. If you need help in buying a home in Saskatoon or want some information on listing your home in Saskatoon, contact your Century 21 Agent Kari Calder.
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