Regina housing market shows growth in September

Regina’s housing market may be on the upswing.

In its monthly report, the Association of Regina Realtors said home sales in the Regina area in September were up significantly from the same month in 2018.

There were 306 sales in the area during the month, up 29.7 per cent from the 2018 number of 236. The number of sales last month was higher than the five-year average for September (302) and close to the 10-year average (311).

Regina itself saw 253 sales last month, up 29.7 per cent from the 2018 total of 195.

The Multiple Listing Service’s Home Price Index showed a benchmark price of $266,800 in the city, down 3.9 per cent from $277,500 one year ago.

So far this year, 2,086 sales have been posted, up 6.6 per cent from 2018’s 1,957.

There have been $96.6 million worth of homes sold in the area so far in 2019, up 35.6 per cent from the $71.3 million recorded through the first nine months of 2018.

“We were pleasantly surprised with the number of sales which took place during the month,” Gord Archibald, the association’s chief executive officer, said in a media release. “It is the first month in a few years where we saw this level of increase taking place over the previous year.

“Upticks in economic and job growth are beginning to stimulate demand.”