Local housing market solid in January.
February 9, 2004 - Despite broad expectations for a pullback in Ottawa's housing market in 2004, new home construction and resales both enjoyed a solid start to the year in January.
Canada Housing and Mortgage Corp. reported that construction began on 441 new housing units last month. That was a jump of 36 per cent from January 2003.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, starts were up by 8.8 per cent from December.
The strongest areas of the city in January were the former city of Ottawa, Goulbourn, Gloucester and Osgoode. Starts were down in Kanata, Nepean, Cumberland and Rideau Township.
CMHC said the total was the second-best showing for the month of January in 17 years. Activity remained strong despite a cold snap that contributed to unusually high declines in construction employment both locally and across the country.
"Total housing starts in Ottawa shot up in January on the strength of both single- and multiple-family residential construction," Christian Douchant, CMHC's senior market analyst for Ottawa, said in the report. "Though residential construction is expected to pull back in this year compared to 2003, the new home market is off to a good start."
Compared to a year ago, starts on single-family homes rose by 17 per cent, to 119. Douchant said that total was 36 per cent above the 10-year average.
More affordable multiple-housing types such as condos and townhouses enjoyed an increase of 46 per cent, year over year, to 301.
Douchant said he expects more affordable multiple-type housing to drive the market in 2004. However, more expensive singles will still enjoy a solid market thanks to mortgage rates that remain near 40-year lows.
BECOMING MORE BALANCED
Activity on the resale market remained strong in January, but showed further signs of easing to more balanced conditions.
In a separate report on Monday, the Ottawa Real Estate Board said that 644 properties changed hands in January. That was a decline of 1.4 per cent from 653 in January 2003. Compared to December, the number of resales was down by about two per cent.
"With 644 residential properties sold in January, Ottawa continues to experience a healthy real estate market," Jeff Greenberg, first VP of OREB, said in the report. He added that the market is becoming more balanced, given that "the supply of residential properties has increased, along with the average number of days for a home to sell."
The average selling price in January was $228,417.
© Copyright 2003 The Ottawa Business Journal