Whitecourt real estate faring well

By Rechell McDonald
There has been a lot of doom and gloom in Alberta recently regarding what the state of oil is doing to our job market, and particularly our real estate market; but how is the real estate market in Whitecourt really faring through all of this?
Brian Ames, with RE/MAX Advantage Whitecourt, explains.
“Our activity has dropped by 20 per cent compared to the same time last year, but this has to be taken with a grain of salt considering 2014 was the best sales year we’ve had in my entire 30 years in real estate.”
So while, yes, things are slower, it’s not as bad as what you may be seeing on the news, and in other cities and towns. Why is that? Ames believes that Whitecourt has a particular advantage in this situation because its economy isn’t heavily reliant on the oil industry the way that others in the area are. “We have other major industries in the area like our forestry operations that are keeping us going, and there are new development projects for the town on the horizon, so that’s a good sign,” Ames continues.
Despite the volume of real estate movement dropping since the decline in oil prices, the actual prices of homes in Whitecourt have only seen a three to five per cent drop in value, at the most, Ames said. This is all good news for the town’s economy, and for local homeowners who will undoubtedly be able to weather this storm far more easily than, say, Edmontonians.
The real estate market in Edmonton has been hanging in there – more or less – but there is an obvious surplus and a serious lack of demand in the market. Homes have been sitting on the market for far longer than usual leading to many price reductions and a fair amount of listing expiries or no-sales. The Realtors Association of Edmonton is predicting an even tougher market for the last half of the year as more job losses are expected, but now that the shock of the situation has worn off, those wanting to buy or sell will be less hesitant.