Calgary Real Estate Board "Persistent sellers’ market conditions drive up prices"
"Driven by growth in demand for all property types, there were 2,110 sales in November, just shy of the record for the month set in 2005. “Lending rates are expected to increase next year, which has created a sense of urgency among purchasers who want to get into the housing market before rates rise,” said CREB® Chief Economist Ann-Marie Lurie. “At the same time, supply levels have struggled to keep pace, causing tight conditions and additional price gains.” New listings in November totalled 1,989 units, which was fewer than the number of sales this month. With a sales-to-new-listings ratio of over 100 per cent, inventory levels dropped to 3,922 units and the months of supply dipped below two months. It is not unusual to see new listings and inventories trend down at this time of year, but slower sales are also typical. Instead, sales have remained at roughly the same levels seen since August. Persistent demand and slow supply reaction caused the benchmark price to trend up this month to $461,000, an increase compared with last month and nearly nine per cent higher than levels recorded last year." CREB