Demand for home sales increased in October, according to a new report from the New Brunswick Real Estate Board.
A total of 884 units switched hands last month, an increase of 12 per cent over October of last year.
Home sales also trended above the five-year and 10-year averages for the month, said the report.
At the local level, home sales activity was up an impressive 43 per cent in Saint John, 15 per cent in the Northern and Valley Regions and 5.5 per cent in Fredericton. Sales were down 3.2 per cent in Moncton.
“October saw a solid rebound in sales, bouncing back from September’s slower pace and posting impressive totals for this time of year,” Mike Power, chair of the board, said in a news release.
“The number of newly listed properties remained steady, aligning closely with recent trends.”
There were 1,248 new listings in October, an increase of 19 per cent over the previous year. It was also the largest number of new October listings in a decade.
Active residential listings numbered 3,185 units at the end of October, an 8.6 per cent gain from a year earlier.
Months of inventory — the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity — numbered 3.6, down from the long-run average of 6.4 months for this time of year.
The benchmark price for single-family homes was up 9.5 per cent from a year earlier to $319,400.
“As the Bank of Canada hints at further potential rate cuts, sidelined buyers face a key decision: wait for lower rates or move now, weighing the risk that any savings from rate reduction could be countered by rising prices,” said Power.
The Bank of Canada will make its next interest rate announcement on Dec. 11.
