Greater Vancouver real estate sales have made a massive jump from last year, but it’s not nearly enough. Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) numbers show sales climbed over 40% in September. The massive increase in sales volume wasn’t enough to stop prices from falling. In the City of Vancouver, prices are back to where they were three years ago.
Vancouver Real Estate Prices Fall Over 7%
The price of a typical home, a.k.a. a benchmark, fell once again. REBGV reported a benchmark price of $990,600 in September, down 7.3% from last year. In the City of Vancouver, the East fell to $1,033,400, down 8.1% from last year. In Vancouver West, the benchmark fell to $1,225,200, down 7.6% from last year. Prices are still falling, but the size of losses are getting smaller.
Greater Vancouver Composite Benchmark Price
The price of a typical home across Greater Vancouver, in Canadian dollars.
Source: REBGV, Better Dwelling.
The size of losses are getting smaller, but prices are still rolling back to multi-year lows. September’s 7.3% decline across Greater Vancouver is the third month we’ve seen the size of 12-month loss shrink. Prices across REBGV are now down to the same level they were in April 2017. In the City of Vancouver, they did slightly worse – with Vancouver East up just 0.1% from 3 years ago. In Vancouver West, prices are down 2.7% from three years ago. That said, prices still retained enough growth over the past 10 years to land it on the global bubble top 10 list.
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 Rise Over 46%
Real estate sales across Greater Vancouver made a massive jump higher, bringing the volume closer to normal. REBGV reported 2,333 sales in September, up 46.3% from the same month last year. That’s huge growth, but it really loses it’s wow with just a little context. Last month’s number was down 17.29% from September 2017, and is 1.7% below the 10-year average for the month. Big improvements, but that’s coming off of a multi-year low for sales.
Greater Vancouver Composite Sales Vs. Listings
The number of homes sold vs total inventory in Greater Vancouver.
Source: REBGV, Better Dwelling.
Greater Vancouver Real Estate Inventory Rises 2%
The number of new listings for Vancouver real estate for sale fell last month. REBGV reported 4,866 new listings in September, up 29.9% from the month before. Compared to the same month last year, this is 7.8% lower. The monthly increase is seasonal, but the annual drop is not. Fewer people took the opportunity to list their homes.
Even though there were fewer new listings, existing inventory that’s lingered pushed the total higher. REBGV reported 13,439 active listings in September, up 0.3% from the month before. This represents a 2.7% increase compared to the same month last year. Not a big bump, but much smaller than the increase in sales.
Greater Vancouver’s real estate market is better than last year, but that doesn’t say a whole lot. Around the same time last year, the region’s sales were near all-time lows for the month. The market is seeing increased sales, and returning back to normal. Inventory is even relatively stable, helping to shrink further price losses. However, prices are still falling.
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Curious as to whether Toronto will follow Vancouver’s downward trend starting near end of this year/next year
Most likely… HELOC/refinancing debt is growing like there is no tomorrow in the GTA. Using home equity as a credit card never ends well.
I would never buy in Vancouver. This city is a race to the bottom in which everyone loses.
Increased sales at this time in the market is NOT a good sign.
Its a reflection of the large number of houses that have to sell. Most of the these houses were bought at the peak of the market in 2016, and are now under water and need to sell.
Wait until the election. I grantee price will go back up.