Starting 2021 off with a bang, the Moose Jaw real estate market surged forward at an alarming rate and showed no signs of cooling off as winter turned to spring. Located in southern Saskatchewan, Moose Jaw is a small town of approximately 34,000 people, and traditionally average sales and home prices tend to be far below that of bigger cities across Canada.
However, as 2020 and 2021 have demonstrated, rural cities and towns across the country have experienced a steep increase in real estate activity due to the overwhelming desire of home buyers to secure more living space at a lower cost.
Across the province of Saskatchewan, the real estate market has been steadily building since January leading to 2021 outperforming the previous year month after month. Saskatchewan as a whole has seen home sales increase by 85% when comparing March 2021 to March 2020, and the year-to-date statistics over the same period. When March came to an end, analysts were shocked by the level of sales. Chris Gbekorbu, Economic Analyst for the SRA, made note that the sales volume seen so far in 2021, is similar to what is typically expected mid-year. “We’ve never seen a March like this before. In fact, we typically don’t see this level of sales until at least May, and until June of last year, we hadn’t seen this level of sales since May of 2014.”
The sales levels in Saskatchewan have been reflected on the smaller market of Moose Jaw. As the first quarter came to an end, analysts were surprised by both the sales volume and market supply. Here is how the data looked over the course of this period, and what we can expect in the Moose Jaw housing market as we slide into the summer months.
An Unprecedented Year for Moose Jaw Real Estate
Following a hot first quarter for Saskatchewan, the city of Moose Jaw also saw jaw-dropping market activity. Based on the latest market update posted by the Saskatchewan REALTORS® Association (SRA), by the end of March, sales in the small Saskatchewan city were up 93.5% compared to March 2020, with 60 units being sold over the month, compared to 31 units sold over the same month last year. Not only is this an increase over a slow March 2020, but it is above the five and ten-year average for the city.
In addition, the year-to-date sales in Moose Jaw for the first quarter of the year rose to 134 units compared to 80 during the same period last year. Sales volume saw a larger jump than unit sales in the area; $14.1 million was transacted in March 2021, compared to less than half that in March 2020.
As the first quarter came to an end, April demonstrated no signs of the market cooling down. For the fourth month in a row, unit sales in the city were well above the previous year. Compared to the previous year, April 2021 saw a 270% increase in the number of homes sold compared to the same month in 2020. In April 2020, the city saw 20 home sales, whereas this past month a shocking 74 homes were sold.
Contrary to the tightening inventory levels seen in real estate markets Canada-wide, Moose Jaw saw a slew of new listings posted in April 2021 – the number rising 170.8% from 48 to 130 over the course of the month. This push of inventory drastically impacted the number of homes sold in a positive way as inventory is helping to balance the surging demand. Economic Analyst for the SRA, Chris Gbekorbu, suggests to not compare April 2021 to that of 2020 due to restrictions being imposed last year due to the pandemic, “It’s not really fair to compare this April to last April since pandemic restrictions halted activity for part of April last year. But it is fair to compare April with other years.”
Taking Gbekorbu’s suggestion into account, real estate activity in Moose Jaw is still well above that of the five and ten-year averages across a number of major real estate metrics. Notably, sales volume is 61.8% above the 5-year average and 52.1% above the 10-year average, and unit sales were 54.3% above the 5-year average and 50.5% above the 10-year average.
What to Expect in the Summertime Moose Jaw Housing Market
As the temperatures outside heat up, it is expected that the Moose Jaw real estate market will continue to burn hot in regards to unit sales and sales volume; making it very desirable for those who are looking to sell their property in the next few months. Industry observers aren’t expecting this sizzling market to cool down until at least 2022, so hopeful homebuyers waiting to score a “sweet deal” may have to work a little harder. Ensure that you have an experienced and trusted REALTOR® by your side if you’re attempting to navigate the Moose Jaw housing market (or any Canadian market for that matter); it’s hot out there!