Ottawa Housing Market Report
- The average home sale price in Ottawa’s housing market increased by 4% year-over-year to $705,117 in April 2024, an increase of 3.4% from last month.
- The composite benchmark price of a home in Ottawa was $643,700, increasing by 1.6% compared to April 2023 and by 1.1% from last month.
- The average single-family house price reached $856,521, increasing by 0.6% yearly and 1.1% monthly.
- The average townhouse price was $553,740, a decrease of 0.6% compared with April 2023 and 0.4% from last month.
- The average apartment price was $444,694, a decrease of 1.5% compared with April 2023 and 0.8% from the previous month.
- May 17, 2024 Update: Today’s Lowest mortgage rate in Ottawa is 4.74% for 5-Year Fixed
Ottawa Housing Market Overview
Ottawa Housing Market: Price Movements for April 2024
Benchmark Home Price | $643,700 | +1.1% 1-Month Change | +1.6% 1-Year Change |
Average Home Price | $705,117 | +3.4% 1-Month Change | +4% 1-Year Change |
Median Home Price | $648,000 | +2.9% 1-Month Change | 0.9% 1-Year Change |
In April 2024, the home prices in Ottawa’s housing market continued to show a year-on-year growth, mainly driven by the gains in the prices of single-family homes. On the other hand, the home sales trailed the 5-year and 10-year average for the month by 2.2% and 6.9%, respectively. Meanwhile, there has been a notable increase in the new listings, which hints at the growing confidence of sellers.
Home Prices
The average home price in Ottawa increased by 3.4% on a monthly basis to a price of $705,117 in April 2024. This price also reflects an annual growth of 4%. Notably, this month, the average home price in Ottawa crossed the $700k mark for the first time since May 2022. The average home price in Ottawa has decreased by about 6.6% over the past three years and increased by approximately 52% over the past five years. These numbers reveal that the home prices in Ottawa’s housing market increased by over 50% in the two-year span from April 2020 to April 2022.
Meanwhile, the composite benchmark price of $643,700 in April 2024 is a 1.6% increase compared to last year. The benchmark price grew on a monthly basis for the third month in a row, increasing by 1.1% compared to March.
Also, the median price often gives a more accurate sense of the market prices, representing the midpoint and not skewed due to the extremes. The median price of homes sold in Ottawa’s housing market in April 2024 was $648,000, increasing by 0.9% from the previous year and by 2.9% from last month.
The sales-to-list price ratio was 98.9%, which means that homes sold 1.1% below the listed price on average.
Sales and Inventory
The 1,456 sales in April 2024 were 2.2% lower than in April 2023 but increased by 25% on a month-on-month basis. The sales were 2% below the 5-year average and 6.9% below the 10-year average for the month of April.
There were 2,597 new listings on the Ottawa housing market in April 2024, representing a 25% growth from the previous month and a remarkable 40.5% increase from last April. The month's sales-to-new listings ratio (SLNR) was 56%, remaining unchanged from last month. An SLNR of 40% - 60% typically indicates that the market is balanced and doesn’t tip in favour of sellers or buyers.
The market had 2,966 active listings, an increase of 111% compared to two years ago, hinting at a significant improvement in the inventory levels from the extremely low inventory observed during the 2022 peak. There were 2.0 months of inventory at the end of April 2024.
Property Types’ Analysis
Looking at the different property types in Ottawa,
Single-family homes had a median selling price of $785,750 in April 2024, increasing by 0.5% from last year.
Townhouses sold for a median price of $565,000 in April 2024, a decrease of 0.9% year-over-year.
The median price for apartments in April 2024 was $407,444, decreasing by 0.4% from last year.
Reasoning
Mortgage rates determine the cost of borrowing, which directly impacts home affordability. The rates today are significantly higher than two years ago, making it difficult for homebuyers to pass the mortgage stress test. The recent mortgage rate forecasts suggest that the rates will start declining by mid-2024, which might encourage more buyers to make a move. However, even after the rate cuts, the mortgage rates will likely remain quite high for most part of 2024, and affordability will still remain a concern.
Comparison
Ottawa’s housing market is much more affordable than Vancouver’s housing market, and Toronto’s housing market, which have average home prices of over $1M. It is also significantly cheaper than other markets in Ontario, such as Hamilton’s housing market, Mississauga's housing market and Brampton's housing market. Looking at cities outside Ontario and B.C., Ottawa’s housing market is slightly more expensive than the Montreal housing market and the Calgary housing market. As most homes in Ottawa are well below the $1 million mark, they are still eligible for a minimum down payment of 5% to 10% with CMHC insurance, allowing more buyers to compete for the inventory.
Home Prices in Ottawa
Ottawa Housing Market Statistics for All Property Types in April 2024
Average Sold Price and MLS HPI Benchmark Price
Total Transactions
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 Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB) 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.