9.4% of homes listed in HRM are priced over $1M, real estate company says

Single-family homes listed for sale at over $1 million comprised 9.4 per cent of all homes listed in the Halifax Regional Municipality up to the end of June this year, a new report from international real estate company Engel & Völkers says.

That figure has more than doubled from 2022, when it was 4.6 per cent.

Single-family homes include duplexes, townhouses and condominiums. The report says 250 of those homes were listed for over $1 million during the period from January to June. 

"That's not surprising," said Donna Harding, co-owner of Engel & Völkers in Nova Scotia. "I mean, prices have grown across Nova Scotia."

Realtor Angela Cowan said some homes that were priced in the $600,000 range have moved into the million-dollar bracket. Meanwhile, sales of homes over $1 million are slowing down, with fewer people able to afford higher interest rates, increasing the proportion of homes on the market listed at over $1 million.

The president of the Nova Scotia Association of Realtors said the jump isn't unexpected given the low supply of housing.

"We've had some of the fewest number of homes put on the market this year," said Matt Dauphinee.

"Naturally, depending on where people are located that are selling the homes, they're going to ask for and possibly get a higher amount."

The report says that at the end of May, the single-family home inventory across Nova Scotia was 20.8 per cent below the 10-year average for that month.

Cowan and Dauphinee said high interest rates are a factor contributing to the low inventory. For example, homeowners with a low mortgage rate may not want to move into a new home at a higher rate.

Over the past two months, the Bank of Canada has increased its benchmark interest rate twice, going from 4.5 per cent in June to five per cent by mid-July. 

This affects mortgages. As of July 26, the typical rate for a five-year mortgage from the major Canadian banks was 6.49 per cent.

Dauphinee said that the natural disasters that have hit Nova Scotia over the past year may be impacting supply by disrupting plans and increasing demand on the construction and home renovation industries.

The Engel & Völkers report states that many people new to Halifax are from — and have built home equity — in provinces like Ontario, B.C. and Alberta, leading to multiple offers in the $1-million-to-$3.99-million market.