Saint John MLS® home sales posts November rebound

The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the Saint John Real Estate Board totaled 181 units in November 2023. This increased by 20.7% from November 2022.

Home sales were 7.2% below the five-year average and 8% above the 10-year average for the month of November.

On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 1,853 units over the first 11 months of the year. This was a notable decrease of 20.4% from the same period in 2022.

“MLS® home sales rebounded from a lull in October to post one of the highest November totals on record. However, the number of newly listed properties dropped to the lowest single month total since early 2023. As a result, the number of available homes fell below the 500 mark for the first time since March,” said Kevin Donovan, President of the Saint John Real Estate Board. “With sales up and overall inventory dwindling, market balance shifted closer to sellers’ territory during the month. On the pricing side, the bright spot continues to be the MLS® HPI Composite Benchmark Price, which is up nearly 10% since the start of 2023. For the moment our local market is stable and with the traditionally slow holiday season on the horizon, it is reasonable to expect a relatively quiet close to 2023.”

The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) tracks price trends far more accurately than is possible using average or median price measures. The overall MLS® HPI composite benchmark price was $291,700 in November 2023, increasing by 9.7% compared to November 2022.

The benchmark price for single-family homes was $292,700, a gain of 9.8% on a year-over-year basis in November. By comparison, the benchmark apartment price was $236,300, an increase of 8.8% from year-ago levels.

The average price of homes sold in November 2023 was $303,118, up by 13.8% from November 2022.
The more comprehensive year-to-date average price was $304,866, an increase of 4.2% from the first 11 months of 2022.

The dollar value of all home sales in November 2023 was $54.9 million, a jump of 37.3% from the same month in 2022.

The number of new listings decreased by 3.1% (six listings) from November 2022. There were 189 new residential listings in November 2023.

New listings were 2% below the five-year average and 10.4% below the 10-year average for the month of November.

Active residential listings numbered 477 units on the market at the end of November, a shrp decrease of 17.3% from the end of November 2022. Active listings haven’t been this low in the month of November in more than two decades.

Active listings were 34.6% below the five-year average and 61% below the 10-year average for the month of November.

Months of inventory numbered 2.6 at the end of November 2023, down from the 3.8 months recorded at the end of November 2022 and below the long-run average of 8.3 months for this time of year. The number of months of inventory is the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.

The Saint John Real Estate Board is an association of approximately 300 REALTORS® that provides services to and sets standards for members. The Saint John Real Estate Board covers the southern part of New Brunswick to the U.S. border in St. Stephen, and includes the counties of St. John, Kings, Charlotte and portions of Queens County.