Dec. 2017	Dec. 2018	Y/Y% change
Detached
Total sales	617	496	-19.61%
Inventory	2,040	2,592	27.06%
Months of supply*	3.31	5.23	58.06%
Average DOM	52	66	28.46%
Benchmark price**	$498,700	$481,400	-3.47%
Attached
Total sales	222	192	-13.51%
Inventory	1,099	1,288	17.20%
Months of supply*	4.95	6.71	35.51%
Average DOM	59	74	24.72%
Benchmark price**	$330,400	$317,900	-3.78%
Apartment
Total sales	170	106	-37.65%
Inventory	1,183	1,024	-13.44%
Months of supply*	6.96	9.66	38.82%
Average DOM	81	74	-8.62%
Benchmark price**	$257,800	$251,500	-2.44%

4 Ways to Make the Home Hunting Process Easier

Shopping for a new home can be intimidating. With so many things to do and think about, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Here are some good tips for making the home hunting process a lot easier and much less stressful.

1. Get your mortgage arranged in advance.

You don’t want to find the ideal home on the market, only to face problems arranging a suitable mortgage. You might end up losing the opportunity. So, make mortgage arrangements in advance by getting “pre-approved”. With that pre-approval, you can shop for a new home with confidence.

2. Clearly define the kind of home you want, and the neighbourhood you want to live in.

You can’t view every home that’s on the market. If you try, you’ll burn yourself out! So, write down a clear description of the kind of home you want. How many bedrooms? Big kitchen? Pool? 

Don’t forget to include the neighbourhood. Upscale? Close to downtown? Lots of trees and parks? Urban and close to shopping and theatres?

With this information, we can quickly create a shortlist of properties that meet your criteria.

3. Take good notes.

After viewing a few homes, you may easily start to forget the details. Was it the first property that had the large elm tree in the backyard or was that the fourth property you saw? If you take good notes, you’ll be better able to make decisions later on about which homes to shortlist.

4. Take care of yourself, and your family.

Eat right. Pace yourself. Don’t try to view too many homes in one evening or on one Saturday afternoon.

Doorways to Better Living Spaces

When people renovate or remodel a room, they almost always overlook the door. However, changing the style of an interior door, or adding a new one, can dramatically change the look of a living space - often for the better.

Although the most common type of door is the traditional solid 6-panel door, there are many other choices available. Want to add light and a greater sense of space to a room? Consider a door with glass panels. Do you have an interior door that gets in the way when opened? Change it to a bi-fold door, which cuts the distance of the swing in half.

There are also specialty doors that are designed to block noise, and sliding doors that tuck neatly into the wall when opened.

Interior doors are typically much less expensive than their exterior counterparts. So, making the decision to upgrade or add a door to a room is an affordable design option. Visit a door showroom and explore the possibilities.