Hamilton and Burlington one of only four regions in Canada that officially favour homebuyers over sellers

While home prices in Hamilton and Burlington are higher than the Canadian average, the cities are actually easier for homebuyers to navigate, with the market shifting from favouring those looking to sell their homes to those seeking to make a purchase. 

According to a recent report from real estate website and brokerage Zoocasa, Hamilton-Burlington (the data is combined) is one of only four buyers’ markets in Canada. While the Realtors Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB) says the unadjusted benchmark price was $829,100 in October ($766,100 in Hamilton and $1,028,300 in Burlington), buyers in the area have more homes to choose from and prices are dropping slightly as a result.

In a recent news release, RAHB said the unadjusted benchmark price dropped almost three per cent between September and October. 

“The arrival of winter is not just cooling the weather, but also housing market activity. Across Canada, home sales have been slowing down as buyers and even some sellers put their real estate plans on hold due to prevailing high interest rates,” Zoocasa said in the report.

“With fewer buyers in play, inventory is rebuilding, allowing many local markets to balance out and competition to soften.” 

To find out which markets favour buyers, which ones favour sellers and which ones are considered balanced, Zoocasa analyzed market competition across 23 markets by comparing sales and new listing data for October 2023. The data was used to determine the sales-to-new-listings ratio (SNLR) for October, calculated by dividing the total sales by the number of new listings in each city. 

Hamilton-Burlington has an SNLR of 34 per cent–a 17 per cent change from the previous year, tipping the area into buyers’ market territory. 

The report says the majority of markets are balanced or favour buyers, with sellers still retaining the upper hand in Winnipeg, Edmonton, Halifax-Dartmouth, Saskatoon, Calgary, Regina and a few other municipalities. 

Other buyers’ markets include the Niagara Region, Greater Toronto Area and Victoria. 

Other markets are still considered balanced, including the Greater Vancouver and Montreal areas. Conditions are also considered balanced in Ottawa, Windsor-Essex, Kitchener-Waterloo and Sudbury. 

“With many of Ontario’s most in-demand markets favouring buyers or currently in a balanced state, sideline buyers who have been apprehensive about entering the market may find that now is actually the right time,” the report reads. 

“Less competition and more inventory often lead to greater negotiating power.”