BARRIE, ONT. -- The real estate market is red hot across Grey Bruce. Good news for sellers, not so great for those looking to buy.

According to the Realtors Association of Grey Bruce Owen Sound, sales in April were more than double those reported in the same month last year.

New listings in April also doubled, when compared with last year, with 476 homes for sale.

The association says 392 homes were sold in the region in April, a 208.7 per cent increase from the number of properties sold in 2020 during the first full month of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The average price of a house for sale in April was $626,713 - a 56.7 per cent jump from April 2020.

The number of active residential listings on the market at the end of April revealed a "substantial decline" of 45.7 per cent from the same time in 2020.

"Active listings haven't been this low in the month of April in more than three decades," the association reports.