What's in store for the Oakville Real Estate Market in 2023?

Happy New Year!

2022 was a wild one! Up and down!

Prices skyrocketed on low rates and low inventory from Dec to March.

Prices plummeted from March to May on the beginning of the Bank of Canada’s rate hike cycle and nervous sellers tripling the inventory.

From May until now though, it’s been quite uneventful with an equal number of buyers to sellers which has ket the average prices very stable even though there’s a 40% drop in the number of transactions.

In my opinion the Bank of Canada is close to being finished their current rate hike cycle, since our inflation numbers are decreasing and the Bank of Canada would prefer to not overdo it.

As I’ve stated last month, the major Banks are dropping their 5 yr fixed rates now to as low as 4.79% while their variable rates are actually higher, meaning they want to charge a premium for the variable rates now because they think the rates will come down, so I’m not the only one who believes mortgage rates will come down soon, I’m in pretty good company.

There are of course many scary headlines all across the internet now stating that this year will be a bumpy ride for homeowners with predictions of further decreases in sales volume and possibly prices as well. I would advise caution in which articles you choose to believe and agree with. Google the author and look at previous articles from previous months and or years to see if they have a history of being a reputable resource. Just because it’s printed does not mean it’s actionable market intelligence.

If the banks are already forecasting lower interest rates, how much longer do you think real estate prices will stay this low? 

I think 2023 will be a nice year for people who are move-up buyers and first time buyers who will be able to take advantage of temporarily depressed prices while paying a temporarily higher interest rate.

I also think that well-healed down-sizers could also participate in the market this year by purchasing the downsized home and renting it out for a year or two in order to capitalize on what will likely be much higher selling prices in the future.