Home affordability improved slightly in London area in September

Housing sales in the London and St. Thomas areas are not following the usual fall trend of selling quickly and plentifully, with September seeing a slump in the market.

The good news for buyers is that it also means prices are dropping, and there are more options.

Data from the London and St. Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR) shows that three out of ten listings sold in September, for a total of 534 homes.

That's put London into "buyer's market" territory because listings are now outpacing sales.

"Typically, the fall is the second busiest time in the London-St. Thomas region for the number of sales, spring being the busiest," LSTAR chair Dale Marsh said. "In July and August, people had some pent-up demand, and those months were actually fantastic. Then for some reason, September has kind of stalled out on us."

The price of a home also dropped from the summer months, with people in London paying on average $622,805. In August, the average sale price was more than $28,000 higher, sitting at $651,329.

Marsh said he believes buyers are nervous due to the threat of tariffs, and the impact on the labour market in southwestern Ontario.

"We have a lot of automotive jobs and agricultural jobs, and those seem to be some of the hardest hit job sectors in our region. So I think some [potential buyers] are just nervous," Marsh said.

He does note that the Bank of Canada dropped interest rates in September to 2.5 per cent, which might spur people into buying.

"Get your pre-approvals done, get your ducks in a row, and there are a lot of opportunities out there with so many listings on the market to look at," Marsh said.