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Hamilton Housing Market Report

WOWA Trusted and Transparent
Market Report Summary for February 2024
Updated March 5th, 2024
  • Hamilton's average home price fell by 2.8% year-over-year, with the average sold price now at $778,238 for February 2024. The average price is 23.2% lower than the all-time peak observed two years ago in February 2022.
  • The benchmark price for a home in the Hamilton-Burlington region was $835,900 in February 2024, a minor increase of 0.5% compared to February 2023.
  • Detached home average price decreased by 1.3% year-over-year to $864k.
  • Townhouse average price increased by 0.4% year-over-year to $714k.
  • Condo apartment average price increased by 3.4% year-over-year to $471k.
  • March 29, 2024 Update: Today’s Lowest mortgage rates in Hamilton is 4.54% for 5-Year Fixed

Hamilton Housing Market Overview

Data for February 2024
Avg. Sold Price:$778,238
All Property Types:$778,238
Detached:$863,806
Semi-Detached:$607,947
Townhouse:$713,584
Condo Apartment:$471,259
Transactions (Buy/Sell):487
All Property Types:487
Detached:306
Semi-Detached:19
Townhouse:109
Condo Apartment:52
Best 5-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates in Hamilton
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Hamilton Market Condition
Balanced
This Month’s SNLR: 55%
An SNLR between 40% and 60% indicates a balanced market.

Compared to February 2023, both sales and new listings increased in the Hamilton-Burlington housing market in the month of February 2024. Townhouses and apartments mainly drove the growth in sales. Meanwhile, a significant increase in new listings of detached homes, townhouses and apartments was observed in the region. The new listings were, in fact, slightly higher than the long-term trend observed in the region. As a result, inventory levels are now notably higher than this time last year.

Home Prices

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Hamilton’s average home price of $778,238 in February 2024 is an annual drop of 2.8% and a 2.1% monthly decline. The average price was 23.2% below the all-time peak observed exactly two years ago in February 2022. However, the average home price has increased by 51% over the past five years. The average home price in Hamilton has been fluctuating over the past year; however, it has stayed within the $750k - $800k range for the past seven months.

The average home price for the Hamilton-Burlington region in February 2024 was $856,010, a growth of 4.5% from the previous month and a 1% year-over-year increase. The benchmark price of $835,900 is a 0.5% increase compared to last year. It is a 3.2% increase compared to last month.

Property Types

Breaking down the Hamilton real estate market into property types, 306 detached homes were sold in Hamilton, along with 19 semi-detached homes, 109 townhouses, and 52 condo apartments.

  • Detached homes had a benchmark price of $832,700 in February 2024, a year-over-year increase of 1%.
  • The benchmark price of semi-detached homes was $748,200, up 2% year-over-year.
  • The benchmark price of townhouses in Hamilton was $646,100, up 1% year-over-year.
  • Condo apartments had a benchmark price of $470,500, a 2% decrease year-over-year.

Sales

A total of 487 home sales in Hamilton in February 2024, reflecting a 27.2% month-over-month increase. This number shows a 5% yearly increase in sales activity.

Looking at the entire Hamilton-Burlington region, the 839 sales mark a 6.5% year-over-year increase. Despite the gains, the year-to-date sales are lower than the long-term trend observed in the region.

New Listings and Inventory

Hamilton’s new listings are up 19.8% year-over-year to 890 in February 2024. Hamilton’s sales-to-new-listings ratio (SNLR) for the month was 55%. An SLNR between 40% and 60% generally indicates balanced market conditions, meaning the market favours neither the sellers nor the buyers.

There were 1,205 active listings in the Hamilton housing market at the end of February 2024, an increase of 16.5% from a year ago. Hamilton's housing market had 2.5 months of supply at the end of February. The average number of days on the market for a home in Hamilton is 34.4 days.

Regional Comparison

The most expensive housing market in the Hamilton-Burlington region,Burlington, had an average home price of $1,139,993 in February 2024. This is a month-over-month increase of 16.8% and a 6.4% increase from February last year. The 201 sales in the month represent a strong annual growth of 18.9%.

In Haldimand County, the average sale price of $641,049 marks a year-over-year increase of 1.2%. The 43 sales in Haldimand County represent a 14% year-over-year decline. The average price in Niagara Northhas decreased by 5.4% year-over-year to $763,771. The sales in Niagara North increased by 17.4% year-over-year to a total of 108 sales. Being smaller market areas, Haldimand County and Niagara North experience a greater fluctuation in sales and average prices on a monthly basis.

Reasoning

The mortgage interest rates have been the significant factor driving the housing market in Hamilton in recent times. During the pandemic, mortgage rates dropped to historically low levels, prompting many Canadians to buy a home. Many buyers found Hamilton’s housing market to be a more affordable alternative to other markets in Ontario, such as the Toronto housing market, Mississauga housing market, and Brampton housing market, within close proximity of Toronto. Due to many homebuyers competing to buy a home in Hamilton, the average house prices in the region crossed the $1M mark at the beginning of 2022.

However, the mortgage rates increased significantly in the latter half of 2022 after the Bank of Canada hiked its policy rate as a measure to control inflation. As a result, many homebuyers withdrew from the market, bringing a significant slowdown in sales and, consequently, a major drop in home prices. The average home price in Hamilton is now 23% below the peak observed in February 2022.

Although the market expectations are changing continuously, the interest rate forecasts now predict that the BoC might start cutting its policy rates by mid-2024. While rate cuts are expected, mortgage rates will likely stay higher than the 2020-2021 levels throughout the year. Homeowners who aren’t able to keep up with their mortgage payments have been moving to sell their properties in the last couple of months, which has supported the inventory levels. If the inventory levels keep growing and the sales aren’t able to keep up with that growth, it will likely put downward pressure on the home prices in Hamilton.

Home Prices in Hamilton

Hamilton Housing Market Statistics for All Property Types in February 2024

Average Sold Price and MLS HPI Benchmark Price

Note: MLS Benchmark displayed is for Hamilton-Burlington

Total Transactions

Best 5-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates in Hamilton
Mortgage Term:
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Market Overview for Detached Homes in February 2024

Average Sold Price

New Listings

Market Overview for Semi-Detached in February 2024

Average Sold Price

New Listings

Market Overview for Townhouse in February 2024

Average Sold Price

New Listings

Market Overview for Condo Apartments in February 2024

Average Sold Price

New Listings

Hamilton-Burlington Breakdown by Region for February 2024

Glossary and Definitions

MLS® HPI: The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) is an index by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) that tracks the prices of homes in a neighborhood. It allows Canadians to quickly compare home prices across Canada and between periods of time without having to account for specific features of a property. Unlike market prices, which can fluctuate from month to month based on seasonal dynamics, the HPI provides a stable view tracks trends across a longer period of time. The HPI is reviewed every year in May to adjust for changes in the real estate marketplace.

MLS® HPI Benchmark Price: The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) Benchmark Price is the HPI translated into a real-world price number.

Strata Insurance: Strata insurance is insurance used by a strata like a condominium to covers damages to common areas and assets and liability to the strata. It can also include fixtures built or installed as part of the original construction of each unit, even though these may not be common structures. The insurance can cover:

  • Buildings and structures associated with the strata including common areas such as the roof, parking garages, driveways, gyms, pools, etc.
  • Liability for any property damage or bodily injury suffered on strata property
  • Any fixtures that are part of the "standard unit" or original construction of each unit

Strata insurance does not usually include personal items and appliances that are part of a condo unit. It also does not cover the damages made by individual unit owners, such as in the case of water damage caused by a unit owner. These are usually covered by personal condo insurance.

Property types

Detached home: A detached home is your standard single-family home. It is a residential building that stands alone and is separately titled or legally a single unit.

Semi-detached home: A semi-detached home is similar to a detached home, except it shares a wall with another home. This pair of homes must make up an independent building and each should be separately titled or legally two separate units. There can only be two homes in a semi-detached building.

Townhouses: A townhouse is the middle between a detached/semi-detached home and a condo apartment. Like detached and semi-detached homes, they are often single-family units that have their own land and may be attached to other units. However, like condo apartments, they typically have to pay co-ownership fees for maintenance and may share some common features with their neighbors.

Condo apartment: This category includes all apartments and condominiums. These are complexes of residential units with common areas such as hallways, parking lots, stairwells, etc. They can be low-rise, mid-rise, or high-rise buildings. Unlike townhouses, there are no parts of the lot (the land of the building) where access is reserved for only one owner or occupant. There can be privately owned units and spaces inside the building.

Plexes are multi-story buildings with two to four individual units, usually one on each floor. They are a mainstay in Montreal and other cities in Quebec. Each unit is usually individually accessible via an external entrance with higher floors connected by staircases.

Property Classes

Freeholds: A freehold is any property where the owner owns both the house and the land it is built on. Common freehold property types include: detached, semi-detached, some townhouses, and farmland.

Condominiums: A condominium or condo is any property where the owner owns the home (or unit) but shares ownership of the land and other improvements with a condominium corporation. Common condominium property types include condo apartments and some townhouses.

Leasehold: Leasehold describes the situation where different entities own the land and the structure built on the land. Owner of the buildings has leased the land and pay rent to their landlord while owning the building on the land.

Housing Markets Across Canada

Data sourced from the RAHB and the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). Any analysis or commentary is the opinion of the analysts at WOWA.ca and should not be construed as investment advice. Please consult a licensed real estate professional before making a real estate investment decision. The trademarks MLS®, Multiple Listing Service® and the associated logos are owned by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify the quality of services provided by real estate professionals who are members of CREA.