'Working from home trend' fuels record October real estate sales and price jump

London realtors say working from home is pouring fuel on the fire that has been lit under the region's hot housing market, driving sales and prices to their highest levels in October since records were kept.

The price of an average home in London lept 28.5 per cent last month over the same time last year to $530,006, according to the London and St Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR).

The jump was driven by brisk sales in a month that saw 917 homes change hands across the region, which LSTAR said is the highest number ever recorded for the month since record keeping began in 1978.

"The combination between the historically low interest rates and the 'working-from-home' trend has generated an extraordinary demand in a housing market with a very limited supply, which pushed the average home prices to record highs across the region," LSTAR president Blair Campbell said in a news release published Wednesday.

The change is being driven largely by the pandemic and the fact more people are working from home, causing some families to seek out larger homes that are big enough toaccommodate adequate balance between their work and personal lives.

The average sale price across the region, which includes Elgin and Middlesex Counties, the cities of London, St Thomas and Strathroy,rose 27.5 per cent over last Octoberto $526,848.