Waterloo Region home sales post slowest May in 15 years

Real estate experts are reporting one of the slowest Mays for home sales in the last 15 years. CTV’s Spencer Turcotte reports.

Home sales across Waterloo Region remained sluggish in May, marking one of the quietest Mays for the local housing market in more than a decade.

According to new figures from the Cornerstone Association of REALTORS, 627 residential properties were sold through the MLS system in May, down 7.8 per cent compared to the same month last year and well below historical averages.

“May was one of the slowest Mays we’ve had on record in the last 15 years,” said Brian Santos, a member of Cornerstone Association of REALTORS’ Provincial/Federal Advocacy Committee.

The slowdown comes as buyers continue to take a cautious approach to purchasing homes.

“I was out just doing showings right now, but you can see buyers are being very, very selective,” said Adnan Khan of Shaw Realty Group.

For homebuilder Sorin Surducan, the current market conditions are the result of a longer trend.

“We are in the bottom right now,” said Surducan. “For the last three years, for sure, we’ve been declining.”

Surducan, who has been building and selling homes in Waterloo Region for more than two decades, said sellers are increasingly being forced to adjust their expectations as homes spend longer on the market.

“Usually we keep it for a good year, and then we adjust the price again,” he said.

The average residential sale price in May was $744,032, down 5.8 per cent from the same month in 2025.

Prices declined across all major housing categories. Single-detached homes sold for an average of $851,674, down 6.6 per cent year-over-year. Townhouses averaged $582,555, while condominiums sold for an average of $410,307.

Khan said some housing types have experienced steeper declines than others.

“When you’re looking at townhouses and condos, they definitely plummeted — around 15 to 16 per cent compared to last May,” he said.

Despite the slowdown, industry experts said the current market should be viewed in the context of unprecedented activity.

Santos noted that while this past May was one of the slowest on record in recent history, activity has been gradually improving since the start of the year.

Sales increased 9.8 per cent compared to April, while new listings rose slightly month-over-month. A total of 1,452 new listings were added in May, though that figure was down 13.1 per cent from a year earlier.

The region also maintained about four months of housing supply, a level considered balanced by industry standards.

One factor affecting the market is slower population growth. A recent regional report showed Waterloo Region’s population growth was nearly flat in 2025 after a decline in international student arrivals.

Still, experts said buyers have not disappeared from the market.

Instead, many are taking more time to make purchasing decisions as inventory remains elevated and affordability challenges persist.

Market conditions varied across the region. Waterloo recorded the largest year-over-year decline in sales activity, while average home prices reached approximately $807,000 in Waterloo, compared with roughly $712,000 in Kitchener and $679,000 in Cambridge.

While sales remain subdued, realtors said a combination of improving affordability, stable inventory levels and modest month-over-month gains could signal that the market is beginning to stabilize after several years of rapid growth and volatility.