Ottawa Real Estate: key questions for 2014
2013 was certainly a slowing year in Ottawa real estate,
with residential prices inching up only at an inflation level and the average
condo price actually decreasing. This was
a significant difference from the results over the last decade where more
bullish results were recorded. So where
does that leave us for 2014? Here are
some of the key questions we are asking ourselves:
Listing Inventory:
Will the current excess listing inventory ease or will we
see a further increase in the # of listings heading in to spring which could
threaten the supply/demand balance?
How many seller listings which did not sell in 2013 will be
recycled as “new listings” in 2014? (New listings:sales ratio was poor in 2013
and a lot of listed properties did not sell)
Condo’s:
Will the resale condo market continue to suffer versus new
construction? Will there be as many
project announcements this year as we have seen in recent years?
Will we see more suburban condo projects on the horizon?
Will expected revisions to the Condo Act help address some
of the issues plaguing condo owners? See:
www.condoinformation.ca
Local Economy:
Will Federal budget restraint play a detrimental role in the
local economy? Particularly, in the case of DND which accounts for a large % of
government relocations and spending?
Will job losses/headcount reductions in the Federal
Government and larger high tech companies continue to be offset by job growth
in the private sector and tech start-ups?
Will local or provincial governments add more taxes
affecting real estate to help pay for large transit and other infrastructure
projects?
New Construction:
Will condo sales and
actual building/completions keep pace with project approvals? Will we see less
new projects announced?
Will builders of new construction homes continue to be as
aggressive with their building plans and buyer incentives?
Has demand eased for high end “infill” construction
properties in high demand urban areas?
Buyers and Sellers:
Were some buyers sitting on the sidelines in 2013 waiting
for a market dip or correction? If so,
will these buyers now return to the market given that a correction did not
occur?
Were buyers and sellers even further apart on price
expectations than normal in 2013, given the wide range of industry headlines
during the year?
Regardless of which
way the market trends, we suggest that active buyers or sellers stay close to
their REALTOR® and therefore stay up to the minute on market conditions
affecting their plans, as market conditions can change on a daily and weekly
basis. For boutique level service and big savings on listing fees, please feel
free to consider us if you are not already committed to working with another
real estate professional.
* not intended
to solicit those with existing representation agreements
Gord McCormick, Broker of Record
Dawn Davey, Broker
Oasis Realty Brokerage
oasisrealty@rogers.com
613-435-4692