Ottawa home sales rose slightly in September while prices held steady as the city’s real estate board said the market could heat up amid “resilient demand” for housing and lower borrowing costs. The Ottawa Real Estate Board says 1,089 homes changed hands last month, up from 1,063 in September 2024. The number of transactions fell […]
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Ottawa home sales rose slightly in September while prices held steady as the city’s real estate board said the market could heat up amid “resilient demand” for housing and lower borrowing costs.
The Ottawa Real Estate Board says 1,089 homes changed hands last month, up from 1,063 in September 2024. The number of transactions fell from 1,236 in August and 1,318 in July, but the board says the trend of softer sales is “not unusual as the spring peak transitions into the quieter summer months.”
Meanwhile, the average selling price of $690,397 in September was up 0.3 per cent year-over-year and fell between August’s mark of $686,536 and July’s $695,209.
The composite benchmark price in Ottawa was $627,200 in September, a 1.1 per cent increase from a year ago.
“Benchmark prices have remained relatively stable throughout this adjustment period, indicating that demand is holding steady even as buyers gain more choice,” the board said in a news release on Friday.
The Bank of Canada cut its benchmark rate by a quarter-percentage point to 2.5 per cent on Sept. 17, breaking a streak of three consecutive holds since March.
OREB says the rate cut, combined with “resilient demand” and balanced market conditions, could spur more first-time buyers to enter the arena and generate more sales activity in the months ahead.
“September reinforced Ottawa’s resilience, with sales nearly 2.4 per cent higher than last year, and prices are holding steady despite more listings coming to market,” OREB president Paul Czan said in the release.
“When you peel back the layers, you see that townhomes are driving stability while single-family homes are easing. And while Ottawa’s diversity of housing continues to increase inventory, missing middle housing – like townhomes – still aren’t being built fast enough, and that’s something OREB continues to advocate for.”
There were 2,832 new listings in September, a 19.3 per cent increase compared to last year. Active listings jumped 19.4 per cent year-over-year to 4,388.
“Continued steady demand helps to explain why prices have stayed relatively flat even as inventory builds,” the board said.
Ottawa had four months’ worth of housing inventory last month, up from 3.2 months in August and a level “typically understood to be an indicator of what is considered a balanced market,” OREB added.
– With files from the Canadian Press 
