How is Windsor's real estate market holding up under the shadow of a trade war?
CBC
Windsor-Essex has been the epicentre of the United States' trade war and has been hit with tariffs on the automotive industry —but the local real estate market is holding steady despite the murky economic outlook.
Maggie Chen, president of the Windsor-Essex County Association of Realtors, says she is "proud" of the community after looking at the latest market statistics.
"Our real estate market is resilient and strong," she said.
The average sale price of home for April was $579,910, just a slight dip from March's average sale price of $583,182. It's also not far off from the same time last year when it was $581,571 in April 2024.
It was at the end March when U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to move forward with tariffs on automobile imports, with partial carve outs for vehicles that are Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) compliant, with 25 per cent tariffs applied to the non-American parts of vehicles finished in Canada. It has led to lay offs in the auto industry at Windsor's Stellantis Assembly Plant, and an overall feeling of deep economic uncertainty.
Chen said the "pessimistic sentiment" has been understandable — but says she does not foresee a crashing market in the near future.
Sale prices have also shown consistency over the last six months fluctuating within a range of about $25,000.
The number of home sales has also gone up to 416 for April, higher than the previous few months — but it's down 15.3 per cent compared to April of last year.
Chen also explained that inventory has gone up, with approximately 1,480 homes currently on the market. She said that's up 17.1 per cent compared to last year.
All that combined means a transition to a "more balanced market," Chen explained.
"Buyers, you will have more options to pick and choose.... You have more negotiation powers."
It's exactly that feeling of having more "power," that's motivating Sahereh Sahandabadi to buy a new home sooner rather than later.
"I feel that so far, this is the best time for me, because I see better options and more options actually," Sahandabadi said.
Sahandabadi has been hoping to upgrade her home, and has been looking at real estate for about six months now.
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