Winnipeg home sales bloom in April

Home buying in Winnipeg and surrounding communities has rebounded, beating the five-year average for the first time in nearly two years.

“April has been a strong month for us,” Daphne Shepherd, Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board president, said Wednesday.

The organization publicized a nearly 30 per cent increase in year-over-year home sales in April. The 1,419 purchases last month outdid the typical 1,373 counted in the same month’s five-year average.

Shepherd attributes the jump to, in large part, a steadying of interest rates. The Bank of Canada hasn’t altered its key rate since July 2023.

People seem optimistic the rates won’t rise further, so they’re house hunting again, Shepherd said.

“We tend to buckle down during times of uncertainty,” she added. “We wait for a little while until we see some light.”

The lights are on for economists: in April, CIBC and RBC released analyses expressing beliefs the Bank of Canada is slowly moving to trimming its key rate.

Once mortgage lender rates decrease, Shepherd expects a bottleneck of homebuyers to form.

Immigration and a reliably busy spring market have contributed to higher prices in April compared to the same month last year, Shepherd noted. Residential detached homes cost an average $436,535, up seven per cent from $409,134.

The highest number of sales last month came in the $600,000 to $699,999 bracket, the WRREB found. Even so, the number of million-dollar houses purchased more than tripled year over year.

In April, consumers bought 18 such listings for more than $1 million each, compared to five during same month in 2023.

Shepherd called it “great” news for homeowners.

Meantime, first-time buyers struggling to enter the market can look to condominiums, Shepard advised. Condos in the $175,000 to $199,999 range were the most popular in April.

River Park South, Waverley West and St. Vital neighbourhoods logged the most condo sales. For detached homes, Waverley West and Crestview took top spots in Winnipeg.

The dollar volume of home sales climbed 41 per cent year over year when considering April 2024 compared to 2023. By the end of last month, people had spent $561 million on homes in Winnipeg and surrounding regions.

Active listings increased by seven per cent, to 3,827. The number is 15 per cent higher than the five-year average, which includes COVID-19 pandemic-era years notable for low inventory.

Home sales outside of Winnipeg increased 23 per cent year over year from January through April, to 901. Those prices rose six per cent during the same time frame, reaching an average $395,112.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com