Regina homes sold in August plummet to 10-year low

It was a poor month for home sales in Regina and the surrounding area, according to realtors.

The Association of Regina Realtors said there were only 305 homes sold in all areas in August, which was the lowest level since 2008.

Out of those homes, 248 of the sales occurred in Regina, down nearly 17 per cent from August 2017.

According to the MLS Home Price Index, a tool used to measure housing pricing trends, a composite benchmark price of a home in Regina was $277,000. That is down 4.8 per cent from the same time last year.  The association said it’s part of a price loss trend which began last year, now 8.7 per cent below the August 2013 price.

The price loss occurred due to slowing demand, elevated supply levels and the cooling impact of federal mortgage stress rules introduced in the fall of 2016.

According to Gord Archibald, CEO of the association, the mortgage rules were brought in to cool the overheated housing markets in Toronto and Vancouver but has been applied to markets whether it was needed or not.

The amount of sales in the city were $78.4 million, which was down 22.8 per cent from 2017.

Homes that did sell in the city sold in average of 62 days. In all areas the average was 68 days.