Prices are up and inventory is down when it comes to Moose Jaw’s residential real estate market.  

March saw 41 sales in Moose Jaw according to Cole Zawislak, director of public affairs and communications with the Saskatchewan Realtors Assocation. “That’s down a bit year over year, but right on par with what we see historically.” 

Sales were down 8.9 per cent year-over-year, but up 0.5 per cent on the 10-year average. 

Zawislak said inventory continues to trend downward. “The inventory situation in Moose Jaw is concerning. It’s down again 13 per cent year-over year, and 50 per cent below what we typically see for this time of year.”  

While the Saskatchewan Realtors Association report shows that 121 inventory units were available when the March report was generated, that number now sits at 86. 

“The 121 number includes conditional sales, so sales that are pending after documents and all that go through," explained Zawislak. 

New listings were down 16.7 per cent year-over-year, and 30.6 per cent on the 10-year average, with 65 new listings in March. 

Moose Jaw currently sits at 2.95 months of supply – less than half the 6 months number that would be considered “healthy”.  

The city saw the largest rise in benchmark price in the province, up 8.9 per cent year-over-year at $228,600. “A $13,000 jump over a couple of months is something worth keeping an eye on, and again, that just translates to higher demand, and less inventory out there,” explained Zawislak.  

The benchmark price at the start of the year in Moose Jaw was $215,300. 

Zawislak was asked what the current month will hold for residential real estate in Moose Jaw. “April is typically a month where we do see higher new listings. It just remains to be seen whether those properties that potentially come to market are going to be snapped up right away with this increased demand, or whether some of them will have some staying power on the market.