Local home sales down 41 per cent in January

January was a slow month for real estate sales in Waterloo Region.

According to data released by the Waterloo Region Association of Realtors on Friday, sales were down 41.9 per cent compared to January 2022. Only 297 homes were sold locally last month.

“Waterloo Region’s home sales in January were at their second lowest of any single month in well over a decade,” explained Megan Bell, president of WRAR. “Home sales tend to be sluggish in January, and while we expected activity to ease to reflect economic challenges, this was a larger drop than originally anticipated.”

Sales of detached homes led the way at 176, down over 38 per cent from Jan. 2022. 61 townhouses were sold, followed by 43 condominium units and 17 semi-detached.

The average sale price for a detached home was over $888,000. It's an over 21 per cent drop compared to last January, but an increase of 7.6 per cent compared to December 2022.

“On a monthly basis, we saw the average sale price increase across all property types in January,” Bell added. “I’m also noticing more multiple offers happening, especially on detached homes that are priced under eight hundred thousand dollars.”

It also took a lot longer to sell a home last month — 25 days compared to just nine days last January.