London Housing Market Report
- Average home prices in London, Ontario, have decreased by 0.8% over the past month to $663,663 for August 2023, which is 2.4% higher than August 2022.
Average Prices
The average home price in London-St. Thomas increased by 2.4% year-over-year, bringing the August 2023 average home price to $663,663. The region has experienced a 32% growth in average prices over the past three years.
Average house prices in London peaked in February last year but declined over the course of 2022. House prices fell by nearly 240k or 30% from the peak by the end of 2022. Average house prices grew steadily till May since the beginning of 2023, after which the price started to decline slightly on a month-on-month basis. The average home price dropped by 0.8% in August 2023 compared to the previous month.
Regional Analysis
Looking specifically at the City of London, Ontario, for August 2023, the average selling price of a home in London was $643,603, an annual increase of 1.8%. The median home price for London, Ontario, was $593,00, showing a 2.4% increase in a year.
St. Thomas saw an average home price of $555,051 during August 2023, which marks a 4.8% decline year-over-year. The median price for St. Thomas was $557,500, a decline of 1.4% from last August.
Property Analysis
Breaking down the London and St. Thomas real estate market into property categories, 427 single-family homes were sold in August 2023, along with 86 townhouses and 51 apartments.
- The average sold price of a single-family home in the London and St. Thomas area was $726,263 for August 2023, increasing by 4.2% year-over-year and decreasing 1.1% from last month.
- The average sold price of townhouses in London-St. Thomas was $519,970, up 6.1% year-over-year and down 4.9% month-over-month.
- Apartments had an average selling price of $417,321 in August 2023, up 10.7% from last year and 8.8% from the previous month.
Sales and New Listings
In August 2023, the sales activity in the London-St. Thomas's real estate market hit its lowest point since 2014. London and St. Thomas had 569 sales in the month, a 6.3% decline from August 2022 and an 11.1% decrease from the previous month. On the other hand, 1,212 new listings came onto the market in August 2023, 13.2% more than the new listings in August 2022 and 9.1% less than last month. The sales-to-new-listings ratio (SLNR) for London and St. Thomas in August 2023 was 47%. This is a significant drop from the SLNR ratio of 75% seen just four months ago. The SLNR ratio is between 40% and 60%, indicating balanced market conditions.
Additional Ratios
Meanwhile, the sale-to-list price ratio for London-St. Thomas was 98.8% for August 2023, indicating that houses are selling about 1.2% below the listed price. The sale-to-list price ratio measures a home's average sale price compared to a home's average listing price.
Months of inventory have increased to 3.4 months in August 2023 from 2.9 months in August 2022 and 2.9 months of inventory at the end of last month.
Reasoning
The latter half of 2022 saw the cost of loans and mortgages increase significantly with the Bank of Canada’s policy rate hikes brought about by high inflation in Canada. The BoC held its policy rate steady in the first half of 2023, and like many other housing markets across Canada, stable mortgage rates supported an increase in sales activity in the London-St. Thomas area, providing an upward push to home prices. However, the BoC’s recent policy rate hikes and a subsequent increase in mortgage rates, coupled with a seasonal slowdown, have brought about a decline in sales activity yet again. Interest rate forecasts suggest that high mortgage rates are here to stay, and we may not see any rate cuts in 2023.
Even though London home prices have seen considerable gain over the past three years (32% increase in average price), homes in London’s housing market are still affordable compared to some other Canadian housing markets. Toronto’s housing market is a two-hour drive away, with average home sold prices over $1 million.
Other housing markets in Ontario, such as the Brampton housing market and Mississauga housing market, also feature average home prices around the $1 million mark. Comparable Ontario cities to London include the real estate market in Hamilton and Ottawa’s relatively affordable housing market.
Home Prices in London
London-St. Thomas Area Housing Market Statistics for All Property Types in August 2023
Average Sold Price and MLS HPI Benchmark Price
Transactions and New Listings
Market Overview for Detached Homes in August 2023
Average Sold Price
New Listings
Market Overview for Townhouses in August 2023
Average Sold Price
New Listings
Market Overview for Condo Apartments in August 2023
Average Sold Price
New Listings
London-St.Thomas Breakdown by Region for August 2023
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 LSTAR 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.