Local real estate market continues brisk

539 homes exchanged hands in November, down slightly from the previous year. Year to date, however, sales thus far this year have exceeded those of 2002 by approximately 0.2% or 15 units. “In terms of sales 2002 and 2003 are running neck in neck,” observes Glen Gordon, President of the London and St. Thomas Real Estate Board. “Considering that 2002 was the best year in the Board’s history, we think that’s pretty amazing.” The best selling house type in the Board’s jurisdiction in November was the bungalow, 113 of which sold for an average $119,787. First runner up was the two-storey home, 91 of which sold for an average $215,630, while second runner up was the ranch-style home, 76 of which sold for an average $197, 951. 54 townhouse condos exchanged hands in November for an average $96,386. The average price for a detached home in the Board’s jurisdiction year-to-date stands at $162,707, up 7.3% from the previous year, while the average price for a condo stands at $111,038, up 9% over last year at this time. The average price for a home in St. Thomas stands at $129,097, up 6.5% from the previous year. “Now is a vigorous sellers’ market and we expect it to continue into next year,” says Gordon. “Our inventory of listings is at historic lows and there is little doubt that our sales would be even higher than they presently are, if only we had more inventory. There are a lot of buyers out there and they are definitely not sitting on the fence.” The London and St. Thomas Real Estate Board, whose jurisdiction includes Middlesex and Elgin Counties and whose trading area totals approximately 500,000 residents, is an association of Realtors committed to providing its members with the structure and services to ensure a high standard of business practices and ethics so that they might serve effectively the real estate needs of the community. The Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) is a co-operative marketing system used only by Canada’s real estate boards to ensure maximum exposure of properties for sale. All of LSTREB’s listings may be found on the World Wide Web at www.mls.ca and the Board’s home page, which features information about the Board and about real estate in general, may be found at www.lstreb.com. Contact: Glen Gordon, President, for comment (519) 474-7005 Melissa Hardy-Trevenna, Staff, for background (519) 641-1400