The 2020 real estate market in Ottawa closed out with an equally impressive December sales period. Despite the usual slowing of holiday season sales in December, the market remained strong.

December Home Sales Statistics: In December, the average sale price for a residential home was $603,880, an increase of 20.6% from December 2019.

December posted 710 residential homes sold, +33.7% from the year prior, with an average of 25 days on the market, which is 36.7% fewer days than in 2019.

December Condominium Sales Statistics:  Alternatively, Condominium average prices closed at $355,982, up 14.4% from a year ago. Also, 292 of this property class was sold in December, an increase of 29.2% from December 2019.

The 2020 Year to Date Ottawa Market Results 

No one could have predicted that the real estate market in Ottawa would continue to thrive even through a pandemic during the first quarter of this year.  Surprisingly, the year-to-date sales were within just 2% of the 2019 real estate year.

Debra Wright, the OREB’s 2021 President, says: “At the start of the pandemic, we didn’t know what to expect. We had a momentary stall as did most businesses; however, once the real estate was deemed to be an essential service, REALTORS® worked with Buyers and Sellers to ensure safety in the process, and the market picked back up and accelerated past all expectations throughout the remainder of the year.”

The results for 2020 were nothing but impressive for the Ottawa Market

The average residential home sale price: $582,267, +20% vs. 2019.

Residential property class unit sales increased 3%, with 14,455 sales transactions last year compared to 14,030 in 2019.

Average condominium prices were: $361,337, +19% vs 2019. Unit sales decreased slightly by 1.5%, with 4,516 units sold in 2020. This result could be due to a significant shift of consumer trends toward larger properties and more green space since the pandemic.

Year to date, the one major factor affecting these results is the increase in property values in Ottawa in 2020. Debra Wright shares her views that at the end of 2020, prices increased by 19-20% more versus 2019, driven by the ongoing inventory shortage in the Ottawa market. These low mortgage rates have influenced many buyers to the market, willing to spend to find their ideal home.

The Ottawa Real Estate Board’s Outlook for 2021

According to Wright, the Ottawa Board President, “In the future, I fully expect Ottawa’s resale market will continue to be robust in 2021. There are no indicators to suggest that this is an overheated market – it is simply very active, insulated, and strong. One that has only been mildly shaken by a worldwide pandemic.”

Important note: The Ottawa Real Estate board asks readers to exercise caution with these numbers. Although average sale prices can be useful in establishing trends over time, these results should never be used to evaluate the value of specific properties. Average sale prices are calculated on the total dollar volume of all properties sold. As always, prices and conditions will vary from property to property and different neighbourhoods in Ottawa.

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