John Cooper’s Weekly Real Estate Take (Week 4 - August 2023)

‘Second Spring’ is on its way! As summer comes to an end and everyone settles back into their routines the market picks up before winding down into December. September & October are high-volume trading months and we are starting to see an increase in new listings.  51 new single-family homes hit the market this week in Nanaimo. New sales are holding steady with 16 homes in Nanaimo selling in the last 7 days. Home values are holding as inventory remains low. This is expected to continue for the remainder of 2023. Some concerns are being raised about an increase in mortgage renewals, pushing more homes to market and those renewing their mortgage have difficulty affording their monthly payment under the new rates. This could lead to an increase in motivated sellers, putting some downward pressure on house prices. I will be watching this closely and reporting as needed.

Interesting Properties of The Week

Notable New Listings

Starting with good value based on the cost per sqft, 5953 Ralston Dr in Uplands is a 4 bed 4 bath 3021 sqft home listed for $935,000 ($310/sqft). 4935 Fillinger Cres is 5 bed, 4 bath 4084 sq ft home listed at $1,298,000 ($318/sqft). 3401 Uplands Dr is a 3 bed, 2 bath 1939 sqft home listed at $619,900 ($320/sqft). 581 Ninth St is a 5 bed, 3 bath 2666 sqft home listed at $874,900 ($328/sqft). 3844 Sundown Dr. is listed at $1,375,000 for a 5 bed, 4 bath 3980 sqft home ($345/sqft), 23% above tax-assessed value. 34% of homes listed this week were listed at their tax-assessed value or lower. Other notable listings this week include 640 Campbell St & 927 Campbell Street in Nanaimo’s Old City, 563 Poplar St & 570 Maple St in Brechin Hill, & 3134 Queen’s Court in Departure Bay.

Notable New Sales

The buyers of 315 Kennedy St in the Old City secured a 5 bed, 3 bath 2783 sqft home for $825,000 ($296/sqft) (8% below list price), the lowest sale price per sqft sale this week. The 2nd lowest sale price per sqft this week was 1236 Okanagan Pl, selling 22% below-assessed value, a 5 bed, 3 bath 2366 sqft home in South Nanaimo. The buyers of this property also negotiated an 8% discount. The average discount across all sales in 2023 is 3%. The biggest discount this week was awarded to the buyers of 3580 Bonnie Dr who secured a $935,000 discount (28%) off the $3,385,000 original list price. 46 Irwin St in South Nanaimo sold for $465,000. 850 Oakley St in Central Nanaimo sold for $551,200. 56% of homes sold for at or below their assessed value.

Whether you’re looking for further clarification on the points and insights above, would like to discover your specific home value, or just have real estate questions you’d like answered, I’d love to hear from you!

Reach out to me directly at john@coopergroup.ca or 250-619-9207.