Signs of ‘a more stable price environment’ in Hamilton as average home price rises in February

A year after average home prices in Hamilton hit an all-time high of over a million dollars, then plummeted to lows around $750,000, the market may be starting to stabilize," according to the Realtors' Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB).

In February, the average sale price for a residential property in Hamilton jumped to $800,584, up from $750,529 the previous month and surpassing the $800,000 mark for the first time since June 2022, RAHB said in a March 2 report.

The average price in February for the region, which includes Burlington, Haldimand and parts of Niagara, was $845,892.

The benchmark - or predicted - price of residential properties is also trending upward, rising in February for the second month in a row.

Still, the average price in February is down 21.6 per cent year over year, which is comparable to the previous month. Though prices are down from February 2022, when they were perhaps the most competitive of all time," they remain well above" pre-pandemic levels of under $600,000, RAHB says.

Despite the year-over-year decline, the recent shifts in price trends should help support a more stable price environment this year," the report reads.

Meanwhile, few Hamilton homes are being sold compared to last year. In February, 464 residential properties were sold in Hamilton, a decrease of 40 per cent over the same time in 2022.

Sales activity declined across all property types in February," the report reads.

In January, the slowest start to the year since 2011, just 349 properties in the city sold.

The higher end of the market has been most affected, with the majority of sales priced below $800,000.

Demand at the lower end of the market is increasing as higher interest rates impact affordability and attainability," said RAHB president Lou Piriano, adding that market conditions mean buyers are less likely to compete.

Piriano said sellers at the higher end of the market appear reluctant to sell," likely because it might mean a higher mortgage rate on a new purchase.

While the inventory level in Hamilton is much higher" at 128 per cent over last year, it remains below pre-pandemic levels. Despite higher inventory, there were just 736 new listings in February, 30.1 per cent fewer than the previous year.

Kate McCullough is an education reporter at The Spectator. kmccullough@thespec.com