Winnipeg real estate market 'Red Hot' this summer

Now is the best time that one real estate expert has ever seen in the city to sell a home.

A cautious spring has led Winnipeggers to postpone their house shopping, and now, there is a boom.

"It is the best time, really ever, to sell your house in Winnipeg," Benny Woligroski says.

He says the next couple of weeks will be the best time to sell a home.

"On the flip side, if you are a buyer, it is pretty tough out there... it is great to sell but tough to buy."

Before the pandemic, Woligroski anticipated a one-and-a-half per cent growth in Winnipeg. When the pandemic arrived, he was surprised by the real estate market's reaction.

"Generally speaking, the market has gone up about three per cent, which is, to be honest, double what I thought it would be at the start of the year. When COVID hit, I thought it would flatline."

Taking a brief pause in the spring, Woligroski says everyone who had wanted to purchase a home waited until the summer. Now, home prices are rising as the demand for homes continues. He says house listings are down significantly, creating more demand than supply.

"You have multiple people interested in your house and the more people interested, the (more the) price pushes up."

Woligroski is finding that houses are selling for more money, with as many as ten offers coming into the same home at once.

He adds that interest rates are also quite low right now.

The market is hot now, but Woligroski says it will not stay like that forever. Come fall, he expects fewer people will be looking for homes as the school year begins.