The Québec Province Real Estate Market Ended the Year on a High Note
Île-des-Soeurs, January 19, 2010 –Québec’s provincial real estate market performed well in 2009, with sales increasing by 3 per cent over 2008 for a total of 79,185 MLS® sales transactions, according to the Québec Federation of Real Estate Boards (QFREB).
"Québec’s real estate market, with three consecutive quarterly increases in sales, finished the year on a positive note even though sales decreased by 19 per cent in the first three months of the year," said Michel Beauséjour, FCA, Chief Executive Officer of the QFREB. "Despite the economic downturn, sales increased by 3 per cent in 2009 compared to 2008, showing that Québec’s real estate market is quite stable."
Sales increased for all property categories in Québec in 2009. Single-family homes led the way with a 4 per cent increase in sales compared to 2008. Condominium and plex sales followed closely with increases of 3 and 2 per cent, respectively.
In terms of prices, the median price of both single-family homes and plexes increased by 5 per cent in 2009 compared to last year, while condominiums posted a 4 per cent increase.
A Record-Breaking Fourth Quarter
The fourth quarter of 2009 exceeded the record set in the fourth quarter of 2007 by 8 per cent, with a total of 18,130 transactions registered in the MLS® system province-wide. When compared to the last three months of 2008, the increase was 36 per cent.
"This 36 per cent increase in the last quarter seems quite dramatic, but this was magnified by the market’s poor performance for the same quarter in 2008. We have to remember that in the fourth quarter of 2008, following the recession, sales in Québec were down 21 per cent," said Mr. Beauséjour. "The strength of the province’s real estate market shows that both buyers and sellers were active at the end of the year, which bodes well for 2010," he added.
In terms of prices, the median price of single-family homes in the province of Québec reached $200,000 in the fourth quarter of 2009, an 8 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2008. The median price of condominiums increased by 6 per cent, while that of plexes grew by 9 per cent.
Québec’s Metropolitan Areas Performed Well in 2009
The strong performance of the province’s real estate market resulted in an increase in sales in most of Québec’s metropolitan areas in 2009. The Montreal area posted a 3 per cent increase in sales compared to 2008, with 41,802 transactions. Property prices also continued to increase in the Montréal area in 2009 compared to 2008. The median price of condominiums increased by 5 per cent, while that of single-family homes and plexes increased by 4 per cent.
The Gatineau area was just as active as Montréal in 2009, with a 3 per cent increase in sales compared to 2008. In terms of prices, single-family homes registered a 4 per cent increase in median price in 2009 compared to 2008. Plexes posted the largest increase in median price, at 16 per cent, while that of condominiums increased by 7 per cent.
The Québec City area also performed well in 2009, with a 2 per cent increase in sales compared to 2008. As for prices, single-family homes and condominiums posted a 7 per cent increase in median price compared to 2008, while plexes registered the largest increase, with a 12 per cent increase.
The market was equally active in the Trois-Rivières area, which registered a 2 per cent increase in sales in 2009 compared to 2008. Property prices also increased, with the median price of single-family homes and condominiums increasing by 4 per cent. The median price of plexes grew by 8 per cent.
In the Sherbrooke area, sales increased by 2 per cent in 2009 compared to 2008. The median price of single-family homes increased by 2 per cent in 2009 compared to last year, while that of plexes increased by 7 per cent. The median price of condominiums decreased slightly by 2 per cent.
The Saguenay area is the only area to register a slight decrease in sales in 2009, as the number of transactions fell by 1 per cent compared to 2008. Despite this decrease, property prices continued to climb. The median price of single-family homes increased by 4 per cent in 2009 compared to 2008, while that of condominiums and plexes increased by 15 and 10 per cent, respectively.
About the Québec Federation of Real Estate Boards
The Québec Federation of Real Estate Boards is a non-profit organization composed of Québec's 12 real estate boards as associate members and the 14,000 real estate agents and brokers who are affiliated members. Its mission is to promote and protect the interests of Québec’s real estate industry so that the boards and their members can successfully meet their business objectives.