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CONDO REPORT: Barrie presents tale of two markets

Thanks to buyer preference, freehold houses selling faster than condo units, says columnist
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Since the beginning of 2024, the freehold housing and the condominium markets have experienced very different trends.

Freehold houses have been selling much faster than condo units, and for much closer to the seller’s asking price. This is mainly because of buyer preferences. There are simply more buyers in the current market looking to purchase a freehold house with a yard and a private driveway.

The real estate market is a combination of numerous sub-markets that make up a whole market. Some sub-markets in Barrie include freehold houses, condominiums, multi-residential properties, commercial properties, and leases. Each sub-market has its own supply and demand, which influence the overall real estate market in different ways. This is why it is suggested to look at each sub-market individually to better understand the real estate trends in each sector.

Let’s compare the freehold housing market to the condominium market in Barrie.

The freehold housing market in Barrie currently has two months of inventory on the market. This means if no other house came available for sale, it would take two months for all the freehold houses to sell. This sector of the market would be classified as a seller’s market. In March, the average days on market to sell a freehold house was 19 days and the sale-to-list ratio was 99.5 per cent.

The Barrie condo market, on the other hand, is much different. There is currently four months of inventory for sale, which puts it in a balanced market. Last month, it took an average of 41 days to sell a condo and the sale-to-list ratio was 97.8 per cent. This is why it is important to understand the various sub-markets in the real estate industry as the professional advice given to buyers and sellers in these two sectors of the market would be quite different.

The Barrie condo market remains slow due the high supply of units listed for sale, and demand has not caught up yet. Buyers in this market are taking their time to make a decision. There are lots of condos to choose from and they are in no rush. Sellers should remember many buyers who purchase condos in Barrie are downsizing from a house and making a lifestyle change, which takes time. Others looking in this sector of the market may be waiting to see if interest rates come down prior to making a purchase.

In March, there were 28 condo apartments that sold in Barrie. The average sale price was $523,026, down five per cent from February, with a median sale price of $480,000.

Last month, there were nine condo townhouses that sold in Barrie. The average sale price was $511,267, down 3.5 per cent from February, with a median sale price of $500,000.

There are currently 157 condominiums for sale in Barrie, including 119 condo apartments, 27 condo townhouses and 11 leasehold condos.


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Ashley Lamb

About the Author: Ashley Lamb

Ashley Lamb is a local condo expert who writes a monthly column about statistics and trends in the Barrie real estate market
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