EAST HANTS: Pricing out of people in Halifax/Dartmouth is leading to an influx of people looking to becoming homeowners in East Hants, says one local Enfield realtor.
Don McCooeye with Royal LePage Atlantic, says statistics and the fact recently sold properties in the area going well above asking price, indicate there’s a push from the city to the Municipality of East Hants.
“What I’m seeing is a push of people from the Halifax/Dartmouth and surrounding areas who are being priced out of that region and looking at East Hants as an option, that in other years, may have been thought of as too far north,” he said.
“However, with the influx of out-of-province buyers who are used to commuting for long periods, coupled with the ability to work remotely for many employees, being 25 to 30 minutes away from Halifax is not presenting itself as an obstacle for people who have sold their homes elsewhere and now need to buy in a challenging market with little inventory.”
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In East Hants, McCooeye said there are 19 Active listings with the average Days on Market is being 20 days, compared to 45 last year. The list to sale ratio is 105 per cent (98 per cent the year before).
And 2022 doesn’t look like the real estate market will be slowing down anytime soon.
“The first few months of 2022 have not seen a slow down period in my opinion,” he said. “There has been little inventory on the market so when a home does up for sale, there is a lot of attention on that property.
McCooeye said his last listing in Enfield for example was a semi-detach built in 2018. It had almost 40 offers from the 52 showings.
“On that particular property we received 52 showings, 38 offers,” said McCooeye. “It sold for well over the asking price setting the record for the highest recorded sale price for a semi-detach in East Hants.”
Susan Fillmore, also a realtor with Royal LePage Atlantic who calls Dutch Settlement home, said 2022 thus far has been wonderful for sellers, and heartbreaking for many buyers.
“People sometimes forget the human side of real estate beyond the numbers,” she said. “Honestly, for every successful transaction involving a happy buyer and seller, there are sometimes dozens of potential buyers who fell in love with the property, imagined their lives there, then ended up deflated when their very best offer was rejected.”
She said the competitive crazy pricing seems to be here for a while yet.
“I just accepted an offer on my listing for significantly over ask, and I’m not alone,” said Fillmore. “The competitive craziness of the Halifax housing market has definitely arrived in East Hants.”
Fillmore said things will remain hot in East Hants as winter turns to Spring.
“I hope that new construction projects in the area, like the one I’m involved with for Integrity Homes in Kiln Creek, will help level out the supply and demand imbalance somewhat,” she said.
McCooeye said the year-to-date sales in East Hants is at 42, compared to 51 last year; months of Inventory is .66 (or about three weeks); with the average sale price is $354,721 up from $276,398 the year before. Appreciation sits at 22.1 per cent increase from last year.
He responded to a question about the impact of COVID-19 restrictions and how that will affect the market.
“I expect this will fuel consumer confidence and signal a return to “normal”. How this plays out for the market is uncertain, but I think with the rate hikes from the Bank of Canada,” he said, “we will see an influx of buyers rushing to get their pre-approvals locked in before that happens, and then this will facilitate a strong spring season.
“Of course, some buyers will have their purchasing power reduced with these rate hikes, but overall, I do not expect to see a slowdown because the inventory just isn’t there and the demand shows no signs of slowing down.
“People who have the ability to choose where they can work and live are looking at Nova Scotia. And why wouldn’t they? It’s an amazing place to live, raise a family, and enjoy life.”
