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ANNUAL REAL ESTATE REPORT: OTTAWA 2021

OTTAWA REAL ESTATE REPORT

RECAP OF 2020: A Year We Will Never Forget

It was a record-breaking year of growth and price appreciation in Ottawa. Coming into 2020 our supply levels were at all time lows and demand was strong. When the COVID hit supply also dropped. The demand did not. Buyers were still very much interested in purchasing. Having a stable economy in Ottawa helped matters. The pandemic even brought other people who were not thinking about buying into the fold. Privacy and pools became high priorities for some buyers.

The end result was freehold prices up 20%! The average sale price was $582,267 in this category. Who would have thought that we would have record price appreciation in the midst of a pandemic. In the condo market prices soared over 19%! It would have been hard to predict these numbers before the start of the year. Even with the lack of inventory the number of units sold were way up too.

This thriving market is due to inventory shortage, multiple offer situations, record-low mortgage rates and buyers from larger markets. Ottawa is a resilient and sheltered market in comparison to others. Ottawa has secure government and tech sector employment that allowed many to work from home. 2021 will see a continuation of Ottawa’s solid resale market, real estate professionals were deemed essential workers and the market was only slightly shaken by the world-wide pandemic. This market is very active, insulated, and strong.

Average sales prices are for 2020 based on MLS sales.

Combined is for all property classes. Arrows are gains from 2019.

OTTAWA REAL ESTATE REPORT

FORECAST 2021 

We are entering the year in the midst of rising COVID cases and economic uncertainty. Not to mention some political unrest with our neighbours to the South. This is a unique place to begin. From a real estate market perspective, I look at the supply and demand metrics to determine where things may be going. We enter this year with very few homes for sale, the sales being recorded so far are noticeably higher than last year. Our supply is exceptionally low and demand still quite high. This will once again make Ottawa a very competitive market for 2021.

Ottawa is a growing city, and I am not sure there is a long-term solution to this price acceleration. Rising prices may be a common theme for the foreseeable future. The biggest change I see in the years to come is in the luxury market. There are many more 1M plus buyers out there now.

Half a million can barely afford you a townhouse now in suburbia. It is kind of surreal thinking about my average sale price in my first year in real estate. It was around $220,000.

I do predict that freehold prices will continue to appreciate at a higher level than condos. Many major projects in Ottawa are in the building stages with dozens more approved. At some point we will have enough condos to satisfy demand. That will come sooner than on the freehold side. Some condo owners have felt a bit trapped with COVID and working from home. I have had a few reach out to change into a freehold and have a bit more space to spread out.

OTTAWA REAL ESTATE REPORT

KEY INDICATORS

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