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Builders started work on fewer houses in February than January, but more houses were sold in 2009’s second month than the first. So, aside from the struggling economy, what caused the housing starts to drop by nearly 20,000 in February ’09, from the month prior? Well, the CMHC says fewer houses were sold in February, while more were put on the market. New listings in February rose 1.6% to 70,797 units, up from January’s 69,706. The flooded real estate market has given potential buyers more options, and less need to build. As the economic instability continues, the housing market moves closer and closer to a buyer’s market. That continuing shift resulted in an 8.6% increase in February home sales (28,669) from January (26,388). This rebound pales in comparison to February 2008 though, as the sales in the second month of ’08 were 30.9% higher.

So, while sellers had a better chance of moving their home in February, chances are good they didn’t get the dollars they were hoping for. The average sale price of MLS homes in February dropped 1.3% from January, to $279,598, while the average price is down a whopping 9.1% from February 2008. As more houses hit the market and builders slow their pace, employees in the construction trade have taken a hard hit, as 43,000 positions were lost in February, continuing a decline that has seen 6.4% of construction workers be let go since October, 2008.
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