News

The London and St Thomas Association of REALTORS® is proud to announce the recipients of this year's LSTAR Scholarship. They are: Sophia Koladich, the granddaughter of LSTAR Member Judy Siskind, Courtney Simpson, the daughter of LSTAR Member Brian Simpson, Jack Phoenix, the son of LSTAR Member David Phoenix, and Sam Peifer-Dawson, the son of LSTAR Member Tracey Peifer.

With 1,109 home sales, June 2015 breaks the record for the best June in the history of the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS®. "For the second best June on record, you'd have to go all the way back to June 2006 when there were 1,011 sales," says Carl Vandergoot, LSTAR President. He adds, "We could tell that June was going to be a banner month, but we didn't expect it to be quite this robust.” 892 detached homes sold in June, up 11.5%, while 217 condos exchanged hands, up 19.9%. Total sales for the month were up 13% over June 2014. “Job growth, stable mortgage rates and affordable home prices have all played a part in making this market so strong," says Vandergoot. Listings were up 6.8% overall, while inventory – active listings end of period – were down 5.5%. "In other words, things are moving," says Vandergoot. "That means that now is a great time for Buyers and Sellers to get into the market – when it is both balanced and dynamic."

The local housing market continued strong in May 2015, with total sales up 6.8% over the previous year. "In fact, May 2015 is the best May on record since 2007," says Carl Vandergoot, President of the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS®. He adds, "We can thank job growth, stable mortgage rates and affordable home prices for what is turning out to be a very robust market in our area." 861 detached homes and 194 condos sold last month, when a total of 1,055 homes exchanged hands.

The Spring market is off to a good start with 964 homes exchanging hands in April 2015, up 15.3% over the previous April." This makes last month the second best April in the past decade – second only to April 2010," says Carl Vandergoot, President of the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS®. 776 detached homes sold last month, up 16.5%, along with 188 condos, up 10.6%. Average price, Year-to-Date, was also up 2.2% overall. The average price for a detached house Year-to-Date stood at $278,094, while the average price of a condo for the same period stood at $184,982.

The local home sales in the first quarter of 2015 point to a solid year in real estate for Middlesex and Elgin Counties. Over January, February and March a total of 1,771 homes exchanged hands, up 14.7% from last year's first quarter sales.

The London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS® held its 2014 Annual General Meeting on April 21, 2015 at the London Convention Centre.

Despite a March that both came in like a lion and out like a lion, the 2015 Spring market is off to a solid start with home sales totaling 769 last month. "Compared to March 2014, the numbers are up a good deal," says Carl Vandergoot, President of the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS®. "However, given the impact of last year's Polar Vortex on home sales during the early months of 2014, comparing March 2014 to March 2015 doesn't give you a true picture. That being said, the five year average for home sales in March stands at 726, so we are, in fact, above the average for that time period."

At the Ontario Real Estate Association's 2015 Leadership Conference in Toronto, Londoners took home not one, but two Ontario REALTORS Care Foundation Spirit Awards – one for the Association and one for an individual – in this case, London REALTOR® Mary Johnson.

LSTAR applauds the reintroduction of legislation that will bring fairness to the tax treatment of Ontario REALTORS®. Introduced by Prince Edward-Hastings MPP Todd Smith, the Tax Fairness for REALTORS® Act, 2015 will allow real estate salespeople to use personal corporations. The bill is being co-sponsored by Liberal MPP Mike Colle (Eglinton-Lawrence). LSTAR is urging its Members to visit www.orea.com/cfa to send an email to their MPP in support of the Tax Fairness bill.