Buyers anticipate an overheated market and take action

Provincial median price by property type

• Single-family homes: Median price rises to $439,000, which represents an increase of 10 per cent compared to the equivalent period last year.
  
• Condominiums: median price rose by 5% to $365,000
• Small income properties: median price climbed to $520,000, a sharp increase of 15%

Median price by CMA for single-family homes

Montreal: $553,250  (+5 per cent)
Quebec City: $365,000 (+8 per cent)
Gatineau: $453,800 (+6 per cent)
Sherbrooke: $401,000  (+15 per cent)
Drummondville: $345,000 (+10 per cent)
Trois-Rivières: $337,650   (+21 per cent)
Saguenay: $280,000 (+10 per cent)

Sales

• Total of 21,337 residential sales in the first quarter of 2024.
• 17% increase in residential sales compared with the first quarter of 2023.
• The property category with the greatest increase in transactional activity was plexes, with +26 per cent, for a total number of transactions of 1,773. Single-family homes (13,832 sales) and condominiums (5,661 sales) follow, up by 16 per cent in both cases.
• Rawdon, +43 per cent, and Saint-Hyacinthe, +35 per cent, were the localities with the largest sales gains compared with the same quarter of 2023. Rivière-du-loup (-21 per cent) and Victoriaville (-19 per cent) suffered the biggest declines.

Selling Times

The average selling time for single-family homes in Quebec was 64 days in the 2024 first quarter, 3 days more when compared to the first quarter of 2023. Condominiums and small income properties followed at 62 days and 83 days, respectively. Both categories post the same selling times as the first quarter in 2023.

Market Conditions

Across the province, the number of months required to sell the inventory of residential properties on the market remains at a level that favours sellers, despite the increase compared to the same period last year. The number of months needed to sell the inventory has thus risen from 4.3 months to 5.1 months (all categories combined).

Buyers seem encouraged by the likely prospect of lower interest rates, and appear to be making a strong comeback in the property market. “This is the first quarter since 2021 to have posted a double-digit rise in sales, something we have not seen in the last ten quarters. This rebound in activity was observed in all CMAs across the province, with the exception of Gatineau and Trois-Rivières. These results, however, must be put into perspective: although the number of sales seems to indicate a recovery, which will have to be confirmed in the second quarter, it remains slightly below the historical average for this period of the year,” notes Charles Brant, QPAREB Market Analysis Director.

For more detailed statistics on each of Quebec’s regions, read the QPAREB Barometers and visit https://apciq.ca/en/real-estate-market/

See also:

First-time homebuyers: What are the costs to expect in the first year?

Pre-Purchase Inspections: What You Should Know

Preparing for Your First Meeting With a Real Estate Broker