WINNIPEG -- Manitoba experienced a record month for real estate sales in July, despite being in the middle of a global pandemic.

According to the Manitoba Real Estate Association, housing sales reached the highest number of sales in a single month for the second month in a row in July. The association added that housing sales have also surpassed the number of sales achieved over the same time-period last year.

Glen Tosh, president of the Manitoba Real Estate Association, said in a news release that the province has experienced an “extraordinary” rebound in residential property sales.

“Earlier this year, in March or April I don’t think anyone was anticipating this level of activity and better than expected results,” Tosh said.

In the month of July, 2,060 residential properties were sold in Manitoba. This exceeded the previous monthly record of 2,015, which was set in June of this year.

Manitoba also set a new record for total sales dollar volume.

In July 2020, residential property sales made up $637 million in total dollar volume, which is an increase of 38.1 per cent compared to July 2019.

The Manitoba Real Estate Association said sales activity for the first seven months of the year have also surpassed the number of sales within the same time-period last year. Year-to-date, there has been 9,183 residential properties sold in Manitoba, which is 2.7 per cent higher than 2019’s year-to-date sales of 8,939.

“Overall, 2019 was a good year for residential sales in Manitoba and considering the ongoing challenges of COVID-19, catching up to and surpassing last year’s totals at this time is quite an achievement,” said Tosh. “While there are more challenges to come in fighting the global pandemic, we believe owning a home in Manitoba can offer a safe haven in an uncertain world.”