“Homes sales in the Waterloo Region were up over last October’s record low but are still subdued,” says Megan Bell, president of WRAR. “I breathed a sigh of relief last week when the Bank of Canada held its policy rate at 5 per cent, and I will be watching to see what the Bank of Canada does at their next scheduled announcement on December 6, 2023.”
Housing affordability and attainability are at crisis levels in Waterloo Region, and the Waterloo Region Association of Realtors® (WRAR) has been calling for action to build more housing that families can afford.
The Board of Directors of the REALTORS® Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB), the Waterloo Region Association of REALTORS® (WRAR), the Simcoe & District Real Estate Board (SDREB), and the Mississauga Real Estate Board (MREB) are pleased to announce that SDREB and MREB have signed a letter of intent to join the amalgamation of the four organizations to bring our REALTORS® Together in the region.
“The number of homes sold last month was very close to last year’s decade-low for the month of September,” says Megan Bell, president of WRAR. “At the same time, we had a record number of new listings for the month of September.”
“Almost four in ten Waterloo residents are spending more than 30 per cent of their total household income on housing,” said Megan Bell, President of WRAR. “The bottom line is the high cost of housing is being driven by a lack of attainable housing supply in the region. The problem is particularly bad among millennials and young people.”
This proposed amalgamation will combine approximately 3800 RAHB Members and 2600 WRAR Members into one organization that can better serve and represent REALTORS®. The proposed amalgamation also opens communication channels with other real estate boards whose interests may be aligned and want to strengthen their advocacy.
“For the first time in a decade we saw sales August’s home sales slip under the 600-unit mark,” says Megan Bell, president of WRAR.” “Home sales were softer than normal last month, which is not surprising given the current borrowing environment.”
Attention Shelter-Related Charities Serving Waterloo Region: We are now accepting grant requests through the Ontario REALTORS Care® foundation!
In July, there were 607 homes sold through the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System of the Waterloo Region Association of REALTORS® (WRAR), representing an increase of 10.4 per cent compared to the previous year and a decline of 21.6 per cent compared to the previous 5-year average for the month.
“The real estate market in Waterloo Region showed signs of a rebound in June, with monthly sales increasing on a year-over-year basis for the first time this year,” says Megan Bell, president of WRAR. “The total number of home sales are down nearly 25 per cent for the first half of 2023 compared to last year but have been steadily climbing since January.”
