Home sales and builds on the decline in Lethbridge
Home sales in Lethbridge were down in June.
According to the Alberta Real Estate Association, last month was the lowest June recorded since 2007.
The association's latest report shows new listings and inventory are also down from a year ago.
"Things are definitely down compared to 2021 and 2022 because those were very active years," said Jennifer Brodoway, a Realtor with Team View Lethbridge.
The report shows home sales are down 15 per cent year over year to 200 units sold.
New listings dropped 27 per cent to 249 and inventory dropped 20 per cent to 459.
Brodoway says this looks concerning on paper but the numbers are returning to what we saw five years ago.
"We find that 2023 is really just similar to what it was in 2018 and 2019," Brodoway told CTV News.
"In 2023, from January to June, we've had about a thousand sales here in Lethbridge."
It's not just home sales that have dropped -- so has the number of new houses being built, according to BILD Lethbridge.
"This has been an unusually slow building cycle for Lethbridge and that's a direct result of seeing the less home sales and, of course, with the inventory already there, you're going to see less new homes being built," said Bridget Mearns, BILD Lethbridge’s executive officer.
As of May, there have been 339 fewer units built year over year, which accounts for the drop in inventory.
Both interest rates and building costs have increased, leading to the decline.
"It's kind of this perfect storm that's happening, where the inflationary pressure on the cost of construction is making things more expensive, and it's also more expensive because of the interest rate in qualifying for a mortgage," said Mearns.
The cost of new homes has increased six per cent from last year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
India's foreign minister reacts to murder charges, claims Canada welcomes criminals
India's Foreign Affairs Minister accused Canada of welcoming criminals from his country in response to the RCMP's recent arrests in a homicide that has roiled tensions between the two countries.
15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
Actor Bernard Hill, of 'Titanic' and 'Lord of the Rings,' has died at 79
Actor Bernard Hill, who delivered a rousing cry before leading his people into battle in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' and went down with the ship as the captain in 'Titanic,' has died.
'A tiny city:' Pro-Palestinian campus protesters organize for another week
Pro-Palestinian activists have set up tents at universities in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal, following a wave of similar protests at campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
A Holocaust survivor will mark that history differently after the horrors of Oct. 7
This year's Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins on Sunday evening in Israel, carries a heavier weight than usual for many Jews around the world.
Princess Anne lays wreath at Battle of Atlantic ceremony; honours late Queen
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members and honoured her late mother during separate ceremonies Sunday in Victoria as she wrapped up a three-day British Columbia West Coast royal visit.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.