It has been a while since I analyzed the sales and listings in various price categories. Thought this to be a good time to do that again given the challenging year we have had and the prevailing attitude among the public and agents that the market is slow, flat, number of sales down from last year etc. for acreages. However, figures and statistics always tell the true story so I have analyzed January to August for this year and compared to the same period last year from Jan to August to see any actual trends and comparable results.
MD Foothills – Sales
| Jan – Aug 18, 2018 | ||
| Price Range | # Sold | Avg Sale Price |
| $2M+ | 2 | $6,952,500 |
| $1.5 – 2M | 3 | $1,640,000 |
| $1 – 1.5M | 23 | $1,209,914 |
| $800 – 999K | 28 | $878,252 |
| $500 – 799K | 37 | $673,196 |
| Less than $500K | 2 | $452,500 |
| Total # of Acreage Sales | 97 |
| Jan – Aug 18, 2019 | ||
| Price Range | # Sold | Avg Sale Price |
| $2M+ | 2 | $3,975,000 |
| $1.5-2M | 6 | $1,686,667 |
| $1-1.5M | 21 | $1,169,418 |
| $800-999K | 41 | $891,213 |
| $500-799K | 48 | $684,046 |
| Less than $500K | 5 | $289,800 |
| Total # of Acreage Sales | 123 |
The majority of sales in the Foothills have been in the $800 to $999K range which is no surprise. Interesting to note the actual number of sales are up this year for the same period last year by 27 acreages overall. The average sale prices in the $500 to $799 and $800 to $999K price range are quite similar to last year but slightly up in both groupings so not much change year to year. The sales under $500K were primarily modular homes on small pieces of land. There were a healthy number of sales in the $1M to $1.5M range but slightly lower in average selling price compared to 2018.
MD Rockyview – Sales
| Jan – Aug 18, 2018 | ||
| Price Range | # Sold | Avg Sale Price |
| $2M+ | 8 | $3,081,875 |
| $1.5-2M | 23 | $1,696,235 |
| $1-1.5M | 57 | $1,218,737 |
| $800-999K | 51 | $885,184 |
| $500-799K | 39 | $696,728 |
| Less than $500K | 6 | $485,000 |
| Total # of Acreage Sales | 184 |
| Jan – Aug 18, 2019 | ||
| Price Range | # Sold | Avg Sale Price |
| $2M+ | 10 | $2,333,600 |
| $1.5-2M | 17 | $1,672,268 |
| $1-1.5M | 56 | $1,202,769 |
| $800-999K | 42 | $885,506 |
| $500-799K | 52 | $698,442 |
| Less than $500K | 7 | $442,000 |
| Total # of Acreage Sales | 184 |
There has been the same overall number of sales across all price ranges for 2019 versus 2018 for Rockyview at 184 acreages! There has been an increase in the number of sales in the $1.5M to 2M range. Sales under the $500k included a cottage club sale west of Cochrane and a few small, older acreages.
| Foothills Listings: As of Aug 15, 2019 Total Listings currently on Market: 225 | |||
| Price Range | # | Avg List Price | Avg. DOM |
| $100-499K | 7 | $422,143 | 199 |
| $500-799K | 52 | $685,736 | 120 |
| $800-999K | 52 | $899,265 | 124 |
| $1-1.5M | 56 | $1,245,268 | 131 |
| $1.5-2M | 25 | $1,757,624 | 146 |
| $2M+ | 27 | $3,211,469 | 114 |
| Rockyview Listings: As of Aug 15, 2019 Total Listings currently on Market: 393 | |||
| Price Range | # | Avg List Price | Avg. DOM |
| $100-499K | 9 | $424,336 | 120 |
| $500-799K | 51 | $711,498 | 147 |
| $800-999K | 90 | $908,640 | 99 |
| $1-1.5M | 113 | $1,253,152 | 123 |
| $1.5-2M | 25 | $1,744,186 | 101 |
| $2M+ | 54 | $3,507,791 | 149 |
Concluding comments:
Total listings across Foothills & Rocky View is currently at a whopping 618 level! Average days on the market (DOM) are well over 100 days on average. So it is easy to see that many listings are struggling to sell because there is ample choice across all price range sectors for buyers to take one’s time and likely be picky as well. The absorption of this much inventory will take time and further add to DOM levels for many of these listings. There were double the number of sales in the $1M to $1.5M sales in Rock View compared to Foothills which is no surprise given there are many more luxury acreages on small land parcels in Rocky View region.
Furthermore, many of these listings have experienced price reductions to try and entice buyers so if you are selling avoid chasing the market downward by pricing way high as a start point. Also if you are well into your listing don’t be reluctant to reduce price if you are not getting action or get feedback from showings that you may be priced higher than ideal.
So once again the properties that are priced properly, well maintained, quality finishing and show appealing are likely to win out.
The message yet again relative to listings, given the current listing numbers, is be patient, show your property as well as possible, listen to pricing advice and don’t blame the industry or your agent if he/ she is trying, as it is likely not their fault you have not sold yet. The somewhat encouraging news from analyzing solds for 2019 is that there have been reasonable levels of sales that have happened and levels are equal to or better than 2018 levels up to this point in the year.
Wayne Chaulk
Real Estate Agent
www.chaulkrealestate.com
