Housing is Essential

Although Halifax real estate activity has dropped significantly week over week, I'll admit I'm surprised by the amount of activity that remains.  Real estate services were listed as essential in Ontario when all non-essential businesses were ordered to close.  People need a place to live regardless of external factors that influence the market.  

Offers Written 

The number of offers written are down by 29% from this week two years ago and 36% from this week last year.  However, the total number of offers written in March 2020 current sits at 512 in comparison to 422 last year.  The next week should give us a good indication as to how we can expect market to trend until things return to normal. 

Cancelled Listings

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Real estate sales are a lagging economic indicator.  It takes weeks or months for sales to feel the effects of shifts in other areas of the economy.  That said, it is currently impossible to predict how the current environment surrounding the COVID-19 crisis is going to change our local housing market.  However, we can comment on what as happened so far and we will continue to update statistics over the coming weeks to keep everyone informed as to what is going on.  

As you’ll note in the charts below, it’s too early for the real estate market to react to what has happened in the past week. It is also subject to significant change as the Government’s response to this crisis evolves on a daily basis.

Number of New Listings

New listings in…

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What is Centre Plan?

Centre plan has been in development for several years.  It is focused on simplifying zoning bylaws and the development application process in the urban core of Halifax and Dartmouth. The goal is to add density to address our increasingly competitive housing market.  To date, this has been achieved by creating density corridors that allow taller buildings to be constructed along the busiest transit routes like Gottingen Street, Robie Street and Quinpool Road. 

Introducing Package B – Draft Stage.

Some changes are significant but perhaps the most impactful is R1 zoning will no longer exist.  R1 zoning states that you are only allowed one unit per household, meaning you are not allowed to have a legal secondary suite.  In…

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