I see some interesting numbers on page 6.
May 2010: 6977 properties listed, 3153 sold (45% sell/list ratio)
May 2009: 4706 properties listed, 3518 sold (75% sell/list ratio)
This means that 48% more properties were listed in the same one-month period compared to last year, yet sales dropped by 12%.
Another way to put this is that in May 2010, for every 1 property listed, 0.45 were sold, but in May 2009, for every 1 property listed, 0.75 were sold.
Inventory is now just below 19,000 and continually trending upwards to surpass 20,000 in July. The norm in the summertime peak is 12,000 to 13,000 units available. The last time we saw these inventory counts was 2008 when property values dropped 15% over the summer. Back then the inventory count at the end of May was a touch below current inventory levels (source: http://paul-
This time, there won't be an interest rate drop and relaxing of CMHC mortgage lending rules to prop real estate back up, like what happened at the end of 2008.
We're seeing a mass rush to the exits by homeowners. The landslide is just starting, the rocks are starting to fall off the cliff.
But don't worry, the HST will get blamed for the housing crash. It couldn't possibly be the high prices.
