As covered in my regular blog, real estate activity across Southern Georgian Bay has gotten off to a very strong start for 2017 despite the ongoing lack of inventory and the upper end luxury home and condominium market is no exception.
MLS® unit sales of residential properties priced $750,000 and higher are up 73% for the first two months of 2017. Through the end of February there have been 33 MLS® sales reported by the Southern Georgian Bay Association of REALTORS® (SGBAR) compared to just 19 sales in the first two months of 2016 at 73% increase. What is perhaps of even greater significance is the fact that these 33 sales represent over 30% of the total MLS® dollar volume in the area for the first two months of the year. The strong sales of higher priced properties is really serving to prop up MLS® dollar sales stemming from lagging sales due to low inventory in the lower price points.
The Blue Mountains remains the stronghold for upper tier home sales in the area with 16 sales to date representing close to 50% of the market. As I have stated before, Buyers in this segment are often private ski and or golf club members who prefer to be located near to their respective clubs. Collingwood and Clearview Township come in tied for second place with 7 sales above $750,000 in each of these two municipalities for the first two months of the year.
Selling a higher priced upper tier property in our market has typically been a long process and in the past it has not been uncommon to have two years or more inventory listed for sale priced above $750,000. At the start of 2017 there were 134 properties listed for sale on our local MLS® system priced over the $750,000 mark which represented 9.9 months worth of inventory. Currently that inventory has risen to 138 active listings as of this posting however based on the strong sales activity we have seen in the first two months of the year, the inventory supply number has dropped to 8.4 months. Buyers in the upper end price ranges often prefer to build exactly what they want provided there is available land to do so. The availability of vacant lots has not been an issue in recent years but we have seen a real run on vacant land sales over the past few months particular in the Blue Mountains in fully serviced subdivisions such as Nipissing Ridge 3 and Lendway Valley.
Selling an upper end home in a market with abundant inventory takes more than placing a sign on the lawn and listing the property on MLS® and it starts with the appropriate pricing in order to drive showing activity and a potential Buyer. As a Market Value Appraiser and Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist I can assist you in establishing a pricing and marketing strategy that will generate results. Whether buying or selling, Contact Me for a no obligation and confidential discussion about your specific real estate needs or goals.
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