Charlottetown sees modest house price gains

- Spring activity at end of first quarter brings more choice, interest rates still low -

CHARLOTTETOWN, April 8 /CNW/ - The Royal LePage House Price Survey released today showed modest price appreciation across all housing types surveyed in Charlottetown. Pent-up demand was released in the first quarter as buyers took advantage of low interest rates.

"A lack of consumer confidence caused would-be buyers to hold off entering the market in late 2009," said Ken Peters, owner, Royal LePage Peters & Lank Realty. "This situation started to change in the first quarter with news that lending rates would begin to rise for the first time in months. Buyers felt compelled to get off the fence while mortgages remained relatively accessible."

In the first three months of 2010, standard two-storey homes sold for an average of $196,000, up 4.3 per cent from the same period last year. Detached bungalows saw year-over-year growth of 3.2 per cent with an average price of $162,000 while standard condominiums witnessed a more modest growth rate of 1.7 per cent, drawing an average price of $122,000.

Consistent with existing trends, first-time buyers led resale purchases from January to March. Empty-nesters and out-of-town buyers drawn to low-maintenance, turn-key properties continued to show interest in the island's expanding condominium market.

In comparison, the national average price of a detached bungalow in Canada rose 11 per cent to $329,209 in the first quarter year-over-year, while standard two-storey homes rose 10.3 per cent to $365,141 and standard condominiums increased 10.9 per cent to $228,963.

"National averages from our first quarter report are not particularly useful in painting a picture of the country's neighbourhood real estate stories. House sale data from the past two year period shows tremendous variances in terms of how different cities reacted to the recession," said Phil Soper, president and chief executive, Royal LePage Real Estate Services. "In Vancouver and Toronto, for instance, the dramatic unit sales fluctuations exhibit a significant degree of market irrationality: inordinately fearful when faced with poorer markets; and overly enthusiastic when the tables turned. Montreal is an example of a city where the market has been much more stable and homeowners there seem quite happy with the relatively slow pace of change."

In addition to strong price appreciation in the first quarter of 2010, the volume of sales in Canada also increased year-over-year as pent-up demand from constrained supply of homes for sale in 2009, coupled with unseasonably warm weather, prompted a spike in home sales in the country's largest housing markets from January through March.

About the Royal LePage House Price Survey

The Royal LePage House Price Survey is the largest, most comprehensive study of its kind in Canada, with information on seven types of housing in over 250 neighbourhoods from coast to coast. This release references an abbreviated version of the survey, which highlights house price trends for the three most common types of housing in Canada in 80 communities across the country. A complete database of past and present surveys is available on the Royal LePage Web site at www.royallepage.ca. Current figures will be updated following the complete tabulation of the data for the first quarter. A printable version of the first quarter 2010 survey will be available online on May 7th, 2010.

Housing values in the Royal LePage House Price Survey are Royal LePage opinions of fair market value in each location, based on local data and market knowledge provided by Royal LePage residential real estate experts. Historical data is available for some areas back to the early 1970s.

About Royal LePage

Royal LePage is Canada's leading provider of franchise services to residential real estate brokerages, with a network of nearly 14,000 real estate professionals in over 600 locations across Canada. Royal LePage is the only Canadian real estate company to have its own charitable foundation; the Shelter Foundation which is dedicated exclusively to funding women's shelters and violence prevention and education programs. Royal LePage is managed by Brookfield Real Estate Services, and is part of a brand family that includes Royal LePage, Real Living, Johnston and Daniel, and La Capitale Real Estate Network. An affiliated company, Brookfield Real Estate Services Fund, is a TSX listed income trust, trading under the symbol "BRE.UN."

For more information visit www.royallepage.ca.

For further information: Jessica Culp, Fleishman-Hillard Canada, [phone]; Tammy Gilmer, Director, Public Relations and National Communications, Royal LePage Real Estate Services, [phone]