Bill Hollingshead

Vancouver, BC – December 12, 2017. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 7,731 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in November, an increase of 20.4 per cent from the same period last year. Total sales dollar volume was $5.59 billion, up 39.1 per cent from November 2016. The average MLS® residential price in the province was $723,112, up 15.5 per cent from November 2016.

“November was the third consecutive month that BC home sales were above 9,000 units, on a seasonally adjusted basis," said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. "Elevated consumer demand is being supported by strong employment growth, rising wages and favourable demographics."

BC employment increased 3.8 per cent over the last 12 months, totaling over 90,000 jobs. Over the same period, average hourly wages in the province climbed 5.7 per cent to $26.82. Against this backdrop, a large cohort of millennials is entering their household-forming life stage. In addition, some buyers are likely completing purchases now in advance of tighter conventional mortgage qualifications, scheduled for the new year.

Year to date, BC residential sales dollar volume was down 6.8 per cent to $69.4 billion, when compared with the same period in 2016. Residential unit sales declined 8.8 per cent to 98,024 units, while the average MLS® residential price increased 2.2 per cent to $708,150.

The market in Fairview is on fire!  It is consistently one of the best areas for sellers!

Stats for Oct, 2017

Sales ratio 67%

500k-600k 82%

800k-900k 1.5 million 73%

*Economists declare it is a sellers market at 20% and higher.  When the ratio exceeds 100% this means that the buying acitvity out paces the amount of homes being listed.

The Surge in Metro Vancouver New Home Completions Housing affordability is fundamentally linked to the relationship between the housing stock and market demand. Strong economic growth has created rising labour demand and consumer confidence side effects, while net migration and a wave of millennials entering their household-forming years have rounded out a “perfect storm” of demand-side momentum. In turn, the supply of resale homes on the market in Metro Vancouver has plunged to decade lows. This has led to continuing upward pressure on home prices, because elevated consumer demand hasn’t been matched by an equivalent increase in supply.

BCREA

BCREA ECONOMICS NOW