The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the Cornwall and District Real Estate Board totaled 96 units in December 2021. This was up by 10.3% (nine sales) from December 2020 and was a new sales record for the month of December.
Home sales were 28% above the five-year average and 41.4% above the 10-year average for the month of December.
On an annual basis, home sales totaled a record 1,890 units over the course of 2021. This was an increase of 19% from the same period in 2020.
“2021 was an incredible year for our region.” said Troy Vaillancourt, President of the Cornwall and District Real Estate Board. “MLS® home sales finished the year very strong. Conversely, the number of newly listed properties was below average for this time of year and were not nearly enough to keep pace with demand. As a result, overall inventory degraded to an unsustainable level, dropping below 75 available homes for the first time on record. The constant market imbalance in favour of sellers we have witnessed during the past year has elevated prices to a point where double-digit year over year increases has become the norm. Our local market urgently needs an infusion of new listings to bring the current conditions closer to balanced. We will be keeping a very close watch on our region in the near term trying to identify trends that may indicate what to expect in 2022. “
The average price of homes sold in December 2021 was $366,471, a gain of 24.1% from December 2020.
The more comprehensive annual average price was $362,433, increasing by 23.6% from all of 2020.
The dollar value of all home sales in December 2021 was $35.2 million, an advance of 37% from the same month in 2020. This was also a new record for the month of December.
The number of new listings was down sharply by 31.3% from December 2020. There were 55 new residential listings in December 2021.
New listings were 17.4% below the five-year average and 32.1% below the 10-year average for the month of December.
Active residential listings numbered 70 units on the market at the end of December, a substantial decline of 51.4% from the end of December 2020. Active listings haven’t been this low in the month of December in more than three decades.
Active listings were 72.3% below the five-year average and 83.8% below the 10-year average for the month of December.
Months of inventory numbered 0.7 at the end of December 2021, down from the 1.7 months recorded at the end of December 2020 and below the long-run average of 7 months for this time of year. The number of months of inventory is the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.
BOARD & ASSOCIATION INFORMATION
The Cornwall and District Real Estate Board covers a large area, including the City of Cornwall and the Counties of Stormont, Glengarry, Prescott, and part of Dundas. It is uniquely situated next to the Quebec and U.S.A. borders, with the scenic St. Lawrence River running along the south and the Ottawa River along the north.