Vancouver Real Estate Prices Just Below Pre-Pandemic Levels, As New Listings Jump

Greater Vancouver real estate was surprisingly busy for the middle of a pandemic. Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) data shows sales ripped higher in July. The increase in sales was enough to push prices higher, but they remain below pre-pandemic levels.

Greater Vancouver Real Estate Prices Just Below Pre-Pandemic Levels

Greater Vancouver real estate prices were moving higher last month. REBGV’s benchmark across the region reached $1,031,400 for a typical home in July, up 4.5% from the same month last year. In the City, Vancouver East’s benchmark hit $1,092,400, up 6.7% from the same month last year. Over in pricey Vancouver West, a typical home reached $1,279,100, up 4.8% from last year. All but three suburban regions saw monthly price increases across the board.

Greater Vancouver Composite Benchmark Price

The price of a typical home across Greater Vancouver, in Canadian dollars.

Source: REBGV, Better Dwelling.

Prices advanced across the board, but still have a long way to go to make up for lost ground over the past few years. All three of the above mentioned regions saw larger year-over-year growth. The monthly increase places composite prices just below March. Despite the increase, the board notes prices are up only 1.1% over the past 3 years across Greater Vancouver. In the City, Vancouver East is still down 0.6%, and Vancouver West is down 5.2%, over the same period. Making up some ground, but there’s still reason to not entirely be sold on the price movement yet.

Greater Vancouver Composite Benchmark Price Change

The annual percent change of a typical home across Greater Vancouver.

Source: REBGV, Better Dwelling.

Greater Vancouver Real Estate Sales Are Up 22%

Greater Vancouver real estate sales made a very large increase, even by historic standards. REBGV reported 3,128 sales in July, up 28% compared to a month before. This increase puts sales 22.3% higher than the same month last year. Last year was unusually slow in Vancouver, so a beat is somewhat expected. However, this is also 9.4% above the 10-year average for the month of July. Year-to-date sales are still down, so this is likely some delayed demand from the Spring.

Greater Vancouver Composite Sales Vs. Listings

The number of homes sold vs total inventory in Greater Vancouver.

Source: REBGV, Better Dwelling.

New Inventory Increased Faster Than Sales

Greater Vancouver real estate sellers were also busy, as new listings made a slightly larger increase than sales. REBGV saw 5,948 new listings in July, up 2.8% from a month before. This represents an increase of 28.9% when compared to the same month last year. The increase is a little larger than sales, helping to maintain a “balanced” level by industry standards.

The number of total listings was still relatively low, even with the big increase in new listings. There were 12,083 new listings across REBGV in July, up 5.8% from a month before. This represents a decline of 15.1% when compared to the same month last year. Most of the lack of inventory is in the detached home segment, with condo apartments having a little more inventory.

Greater Vancouver real estate is seeing prices rise, but they aren’t quite at pre-pandemic levels. Sales made a big increase, even compared to historic standards. New inventory is also increasing very quickly though, so it’s worth watching to see if buyers can keep up with sellers.

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5 Comments

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  • Reply
    Kathleen Thomson 4 years ago

    Less impressive when you look at that sales chart, and realize the reason it was the most sales since 2017 is because April and May don’t even register as real months.

    • Reply
      alvi 4 years ago

      Very impressive when you consider the massive hit the global economy has taken and the run-up in prices of real estate in Vancover in the last 20 years

  • Reply
    straw walker 4 years ago

    If you consider the last 15 days the listings in the city of Vancouver were 798 compared to 149 sales, which is an indication that these mini real estate empires of home owners owning more that 1 home is now all up for sale.
    52% of the city home owners, own more than 1 home.
    Simply taking advantage of a sales opportunity

  • Reply
    Itchy Bear 4 years ago

    We keep seeing these stories that the prices are going up and, in Toronto at least single family homes are the targets. So can this be explained in sales skewing to more expensive single family homes rather than cheaper condos, or are prices actually rising on an apples to apples basis?

    • Reply
      alvi 4 years ago

      Yes precisely average prices changes are distorted to the extent that sales mix for a period is not align with current housing stock mix. For July, entry level housing became cheaper while high-end ,which has done nothing for 3 years, has performed relatively better

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