Real estate markets in and around Vancouver have had a quiet November as the volume of sales and new listings are trending below the seasonal norms, according to the most recent data from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REGVB). There were 1,614 sales in November, down almost 53% year-over-year from last November’s sales volume of 3,428 and nearly 37% below the 10 year November average.
Downward Pressure Caused by Rate Hikes is Still Strong
This year to date, Canadians have been hit with seven rate hikes since March in the Bank’s bid to tackle inflation, and housing markets have felt the heat with each increase to the overnight lending rate. Month-over-month, sales were down 15.2% to just 1,614 in November. With a seventh rate hike of 50 basis points announced last week, Andrew Lis, REBGV director, believes the quiet winter is likely to continue. Prior to the announcement, he said: “While it’s always difficult to predict what the bank will do with certainty, this persistent inflationary backdrop sets up the December 7 rate announcement to be yet another increase, making holiday-season home purchases something many people may end up foregoing this year.”
Good News for Buyers: Home Prices Have Flattened
Alongside the lack of sales, home prices are flattening around Vancouver. Last month’s benchmark home price was $1,148,900, down only 0.6% from September. While the benchmark price dipped by 1.5% in November to $1,131,600, it’s moving down at a slower rate than earlier in the year. The decline is more prominent in detached homes, where the benchmark price has fallen by 1.7% year-over-year and 1.9% from October, to $1,856,800. Apartments and attached homes are still up year-over-year with price increases of 3.5% and 2.7% respectively.
Despite the flattening of prices, there are still housing types experiencing sharper declines in some markets across Vancouver. Single-family detached homes in West Vancouver are down 5.7% from October to $3,127,800. Apartments are down in the Sunshine Coast by 3.8% to $487,100, meaning there are still more affordable options for buyers in the face of the high home prices and increasing interest rates.
Greater Vancouver Region
Burnaby has had a mild improvement of sales in the detached sector, with 45 homes being sold, up 4.7% over last month. Attached home and apartment sales are down 8.3% and 8.8% respectively. New Westminster has had the biggest improvement in sales of any housing type, with detached sales up by more than 88% over October.
New listings are mostly down across the board, but Port Coquitlam has had a 12.9% improvement in detached listings, while Port Moody/Belcarra has had a 62.5% jump from October with 52 apartment listings coming to market.
