Real Estate Lowest in 1 Year History

The booming Vancouver real estate market is showing lowest prices in a one year history. The lowest drop is in 2 bedroom detached homes which have decreased by an average price of 40%.

Last year the overall number of homes sold in Vancouver was 24,619 which is the lowest total since way back on the year 2000; that’s 32% reduction from just shy of 36,000 homes sold in 2017 and a staggering 25% down on the ten year average. This is no flash in the pan; the composite benchmark price for a home (classified as detached homes, condos and townhouses collectively) finished 2018 at a little over $1m.

Since 2018:

• Detached homes are down by an average of -15%
• Condos are also down an average -15%
• 1 Bedroom townhouses are down by an average of -14% yet 4 bedroom townhouses have skyrocketed up by an average price of 93%

We’re definitely seeing an adjustment away from a sellers’ market; a maelstrom of variables including high prices, higher interested rates and tighter requirements to secure a mortgage mean that if you can buy, you have options and if you’re are a seller you might have to take less than you’ve banked on getting.

Fraser Valley also experienced a major slowdown during 2018 with the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board stating that sales dropped by as much as 30%; their lowest since 2013. This comes off the back of further analysis by BC Assessment which shows up to a 15% drop in the estimated values of detached homes in the greater Vancouver area as of middle to late 2018. They also found that the median value of residential property across Vancouver, Burnaby and North Vancouver dropped by 4% with even more staggering drops of 12% and 11% in West Vancouver and University Endowment Lands respectively.

The Current Position

According to Zolo.ca there has been a marked decrease in the number of detached, townhouse and condo sales in Vancouver when comparing May 2018 to April 2019’s figures. In May 2018 there were 173 detached homes sold, 92 townhouses and 419 condos. Fast forward to April 2019 and the picture has changed; in April 2019 there were 102 detached homes sold, 66 townhouses and 313 condos.

Clearly this is a marked decrease and doesn’t bode well for sellers; if you are in a position to buy however, you really are in pole position; the box seat so to speak.