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Competition continues to drive Metro Vancouver’s housing market
Metro Vancouver* home buyers spent the summer months searching for their next home. Between June and August, home sales were between 25 and 30 per cent above the ten-year sales average.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Metro Vancouver reached 3,362 on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in August 2015. This represents a 21.3 per cent increase compared to the 2,771 sales recorded in August 2014, and a decrease of 15.5 per cent compared to the 3,978 sales in July 2015.
Last month’s sales were 27.9 per cent above the 10-year sales average for the month.
“There was no summer lull in our market this year. Home buyers have been working with their REALTORS® throughout the summer months,” Darcy McLeod, REBGV president said. “They’re motivated, but they’re competing for a smaller supply of homes for sale than is typical for this time of year — that’s the dynamic driving our market right now.”
New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Metro Vancouver totalled 4,281 in August. This represents an 8.7 per cent increase compared to the 3,940 new listings reported in August 2014.
The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the region’s MLS® is 10,897, a 26.2 per cent decline compared to August 2014 and a 5.3 per cent decline compared to July 2015.
“Those who have a sound buying strategy and an understanding of current price trends are having the most success in today’s market,” McLeod said.
The MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver is currently $708,500. This represents a 12 per cent increase compared to August 2014.
The sales-to-active-listings ratio in August was 30.9 per cent. This is the sixth consecutive month that this ratio has been above 30 per cent in Metro Vancouver.
Sales of detached properties in August 2015 reached 1,290, an increase of 11.4 per cent from the 1,158 detached sales recorded in August 2014, and a 22.6 per cent increase from the 1,052 units sold in August 2013. The benchmark price for a detached property in Metro Vancouver increased 17.5 per cent from August 2014 to $1,159,600.
Sales of apartment properties reached 1,494 in August 2015, an increase of 32.7 per cent compared to the 1,126 sales in August 2014, and an increase of 46.8 per cent compared to the 1,018 sales in August 2013. The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 6.3 per cent from August 2014 to $405,400.
Attached property sales in August 2015 totalled 578, an increase of 18.7 per cent compared to the 487 sales in August 2014, and a 30.2 per cent increase from the 444 attached properties sold in August 2013. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 7.3 per cent between August 2014 and 2015 to $511,500.
*Editor’s Note: Areas covered by Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver include: Whistler, Sunshine Coast, Squamish, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Richmond, Port Moody, Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam, New Westminster, Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge, and South Delta.
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“While rock-bottom mortgage interest rates and BC’s nation leading economic growth are underpinning demand, consumer confidence is the key driver of the near record activity,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. 