Bidding wars heat up

Winnipeg Free Press

17-06-2025

First, Noella Delorme tempered her expectations.
A home's listing price might read $275,000. To her, that was code for upwards of $320,000 and a stressful bidding process against others.
'I'd kind of write it off,' she said.
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES
Increased demand for houses in Winnipeg combined with a lack of inventory has lead to bidding wars across the city.
The 28 year old has found house hunting in Winnipeg to be a daunting experience. In several neighbourhoods, the average house sells above list price — 112.2 per cent of list price in East Kildonan, for example.
This spring was the busiest since the COVID-19 pandemic, Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board tracking shows. In May, more than half of homes sold — 52 per cent — went above asking price.
A home in South Osborne, on Jubilee Avenue, recently sold for nearly $150,000 over asking price. Five weeks ago, Delorme paid $26,000 more than list price for a home in North Kildonan.
'I felt like that was still pretty conservative,' she said, adding she sized up the home, listed for $265,000, with her real estate agent.
It was her sixth time bidding since February. The homes she eyed sold, regularly, for $50,000 to $100,000 more than list price, she said.
After feeling defeated, she took a month away from house hunting to 're-calibrate.' When she returned, she implemented a new strategy: focus on homes below her budget with the expectation prices would rise via bidding war.
'Every buyer is going to have to take an approach that they're comfortable with,' said Michael Froese, the Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board's president.
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'They may have to make concessions on the house (or) where it is… when you're looking into highly competitive neighbourhoods or highly competitive price points.'
Increased demand has collided with a lack of inventory, leading to bids across the city. By the end of May, Winnipeg had 2.04 months' worth of inventory, Froese said. Meaning, if houses stopped being put up for sale, it would take roughly two months to sell everything available, given demand. Roughly three months' worth of inventory allows for a balanced market between buyers and sellers, Froese said.
At least 1,400 homes would need listing to create a balanced market amid current demand, Froese estimated.
'We're still quite a ways away from achieving that,' he noted, adding the listing-to-sale ratio usually rises in the winter.
Froese, a practising real estate agent, cited several reasons for the low inventory: homeowners are holding onto places longer than expected and children are staying at home longer; pandemic-era supply chain snarls delayed construction, causing a ripple effect; and slow permitting for new builds.
'Despite the prices rising, we still have (an) affordable major market in Canada.'–Michael Froese, Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board president
Meantime, demand is booming. Millennials have entered the market, noted real estate agent Catherine Schellenberg.
Manitoba accepted many highly skilled immigrants in recent years, added Froese.
'Despite the prices rising, we still have (an) affordable major market in Canada,' he said. 'We have… also a very stable economy.'
Historically low interest rates help, as does a growing population that's generally employed, he said. (Winnipeg had 815,599 residents by July 1, 2023. The population could grow by 62,300 people by 2028, a 2024 city report projected.)
Most Winnipeg buyers seek homes in the $350,000 to $500,000 range — and that's where bidding most commonly occurs, Froese said.
West Fort Garry joins East Kildonan as the city community with the highest average sale price above listing (at 112 per cent of list price). River Heights, Crescentwood and North Kildonan follow at 111 per cent.
Citywide, sale prices have averaged 100 per cent of list prices from March to June. In the five years preceding the COVID-19 pandemic, the average hovered closer to 98 per cent.
Not all sales end in bidding wars. Some houses may sit on the market or sell for less than asking. Such homes may be areas with more stock available or are listed at a luxury price point, Froese said.
Properties that require renovations may also sit for a while, Schellenberg added. She's watched the market shock prospective home buyers — from first-time purchasers to downsizers, to people moving from larger metropolitans, like Toronto.
Froese said some buyers have to shift to condos and attached homes, like row homes, to meet their budgets.
'I had to almost get uncomfortable and just put a lot of money towards (my) home,' said Nadine Meilleur, recalling her 2024 house search.
She bid on five homes; most sold for $40,000 to $70,000 above asking price. She didn't want to compromise on a neighbourhood, and having three bedrooms for her children was important.
It was a discouraging experience at times, she said.
'I had to almost get uncomfortable and just put a lot of money towards (my) home.'–Nadine Meilleur on her 2024 house search
It's ultimately the sellers' choice on how to price their home, said Schellenberg, who's president of the Manitoba Real Estate Association.
Real estate agents tend not to under-price properties, though they obey the seller unless the price is 'ridiculously low or ridiculously high.'
On the buying side, Realtors must share historical information of similar homes with clients, letting them know what to expect, Schellenberg said. Sellers may look beyond bid prices when making a decision — there are possession dates and terms of offers to consider.
Some jurisdictions, like Ontario, offer a more transparent bidding process where sellers can share submitted bid prices with possible buyers. It strays from the blind bidding process in Manitoba; bidders don't know the contents of others' proposals.
Schellenberg said she doesn't see the practice changing any time soon.
Manitoba's Real Estate Services Act doesn't mandate any bidding process for real estate transactions, noted Erika Miller, communications manager of the Manitoba Financial Services Agency.
'The Act just legislates the Realtor's conduct expected in all situations – that is, to be fair and avoid all deceptive dealing,' Miller wrote in an email.
Schellenberg believes competition will always be present: 'It's just on a bigger scale. Now we have more people at the table shopping.'
Last May, home sales increased four per cent while listings were down 11 per cent year-over-year, real estate board data show. The average price of a residential detached house was $459,320, up eight per cent year-over-year.
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Gabrielle PichéReporter
Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle.
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