The news in the last couple of days has reported good things for the Edmonton real estate market.

First, CMHC has released the Spring 2010 edition of their Housing Market Outlook for Edmonton. For the resale market, they are predicting an increase in sales over 2009 and continued improvements through 2011. “Total sales should reach 19,250 units this year, representing a slight gain over 2009” (19,139 units). The MLS average price (including all residential houses, condos, etc) should increase to $333,000, a 3.9% increase over 2009’s MLS average price of $320,378 and up 0.8% from 2008’s MLS average price of $332,852. By the end of 2011, CHMC is predicting 20,000 sales with an average sale price of $345,000, up 1.9% over 2007’s peak MLS average price of $338,636.

Some to-the-point quotes from the report: “CMHC expects balanced market conditions to prevail throughout 2010”, “Monthly average prices have been trending upward in 2010 due to a balanced market and increased trade-up activity”, “Affordability improved across Greater Edmonton in 2008 and 2009 due to a combination of lower prices and falling mortgage rates. As rising mortgage rates magnify price gains going forward, the more stringent qualifying conditions that began in April will put a moderate damper on demand. This should also help to contain price gains, as entry-level buyers are encouraged to consider more moderately-priced dwellings”. The entire press release and forecast summary can be found at:
http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/odpub/esub/64343/64343_2010_B01.pdf

Second, the Edmonton Sun today had page-3 headlines of “Housing boom on the horizon.” The news article focuses on the same CMHC Housing Market Outlook with further quotes from Realtors Association of Edmonton president Larry Westergard: “We’re looking at a market right now that is showing absolute signs of recovery. So we’ve turned that corner. If you’re a seller or a buyer, it’s a good time to start making some decisions.” The entire article can be found here:
http://www.edmontonsun.com/news/edmonton/2010/05/19/14009811.html