The Muskoka real estate market is seeing the effects of supply and demand. President of the Lakelands Association of Realtors, Mike Stahls, says 2017 was a seller’s market in cottage country because fewer homes for sale drove up the price to buy.
Stahls says in 2016, 1,177 off water homes were sold and in 2017 that number went down to 1,141. When it comes to waterfront homes, 264 homes sold in 2016 and 209 in 2017. The average off water home price in 2016 was around $382,000 which went up to $422,000 in 2017, according to Stahls, which is a $40,000 increase.
Stahls says Lakelands expects an active spring market in 2018, with sales beginning this winter.
The new mortgage rules require borrowers to undergo a stress test, which might require potential homeowners to buy a less expensive house than they could have bought in 2017, or to come up with a larger down payment.