Greater Vancouver housing market maintains a steady spring pace
VANCOUVER, B.C. – May 2, 2012 – Home sale and listing activity has maintained a consistent pace on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Greater Vancouver in recent months, which has helped create balanced conditions for the region’s housing market.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver reached 2,799 on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in April 2012. This represents a 13.2 per cent decline compared to the 3,225 sales recorded in April 2011 and a decline of 2.6 per cent compared to the 2,874 sales in March 2012.
April sales were the lowest total for the month in the region since 2001 and 16.9 per cent below the 10-year April sales average of 3,369.
New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 6,056 in April 2012. This represents a 3.6 per cent increase compared to both March 2012 when 5,843 homes were listed and April 2011 when 5,847 homes were listed for sale on the region’s MLS®.
Last month’s new listing total was 6.7 per cent above the 10-year average for listings in Greater Vancouver for April. At 16,538, the total number of homes listed for sale on the region’s MLS® increased 8.5 per cent in April compared to last month and increased 16 per cent from this time last year.
The total number of properties for sale in Greater Vancouver has increased each month since December.
The MLS® HPI benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver currently sits at $683,800, up 3.7 per cent compared to April 2011 and an increase of 2.8 per cent over the last three months. The benchmark price for all residential properties in the Lower Mainland is $612,000, which is a 3.4 per cent increase compared to April 2011 and a 2.6 per cent increase compared to three months ago.
Sales of detached properties on the MLS® in April 2012 reached 1,126, a decline of 19.7 per cent from the 1,402 detached sales recorded in April 2011, and a 17.8 per cent decrease from the 1,370 units sold in April 2010. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 6.3 per cent from April 2011 to $1,064,800.
Sales of apartment properties reached 1,190 in April 2012, a decline of 0.9 per cent compared to the 1,201 sales in April 2011, and a decrease of 22 per cent compared to the 1,526 sales in April 2010.The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 1.1 per cent from April 2011 to $375,900.
Townhome property sales in April 2012 totalled 483, a decline of 22.3 per cent compared to the 622 sales in April 2011, and a 21.6 per cent decrease from the 616 townhome properties sold in April 2010. The benchmark price of a townhome unit increased 1.7 per cent between April 2011 and 2012 to $487,300.
REBGV reports increased housing demand in February
VANCOUVER, B.C. – March 2, 2011 – Demand for detached homes continues to be strong across Greater Vancouver, with
particularly high sales volumes occurring in Richmond and Vancouver Westside.
For the past two months, the number of properties listed for sale and those sold on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®)
in Greater Vancouver outpaced the 10-year average in both categories. From a historical perspective, February’s 3,097 homes
sales outpace the 2,742 home-sale average recorded in the region over the last ten years.
“We saw an increase in demand across our region last month as more buyers entered the market in advance of the spring
season,” said Jake Moldowan, president of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV). “The intensity of this activity
varied between communities. Our statistics tell us that single detached homes in Richmond and the west side of Vancouver
remain the most sought after properties in our marketplace.”
Between November 2010 and February 2011, the MLSLink® Housing Price Index (HPI) benchmark price of a detached
home in Richmond increased $190,739 to $1,099,679; in Vancouver West, detached home prices increased $222,185 to
$1,850,072. In comparison, detached home prices across the region increased $51,762 between November 2010 and February
2011 to $848,645.
“To effectively analyse real estate statistics for the purpose of buying or selling a home, it’s critical to focus on your
neighbourhood of choice because, like we see today, conditions and prices can fluctuate significantly within the same city or
municipality,” Moldowan said.
Looking across the region, the REBGV reports that residential property sales of detached, attached and apartment properties
in Greater Vancouver reached 3,097 on the MLS® in February 2011. This represents a 70.3 per cent increase compared
to the 1,819 sales recorded in January 2011, an increase of 25.2 per cent compared to the 2,473 sales in February 2010 and a
109.3 per cent increase from the 1,480 home sales in February 2009.
New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 5,693 in February 2011. This
represents a 23.6 per cent increase compared to February 2010 when 4,606 properties were listed, and an 18.6 per cent increase
compared to January 2011 when 4,801 homes were added to the MLS® in Greater Vancouver.
“With a sizeable increase in the number of properties coming onto the market for sale, there’s a good selection out there for
buyers to choose from,” Moldowan said.
At, 11,925, the total number of residential property listings on the MLS® increased 14.2 per cent in February compared to
last month and increased 5 per cent from this time last year.
Sales of detached properties on the MLS® in February 2011 reached 1,402, an increase of 42.6 per cent from the 983 detached
sales recorded in February 2010, and a 138.9 per cent increase from the 587 units sold in February 2009. The benchmark
price for detached properties increased 6 per cent from February 2010 to $848,645.
Sales of apartment properties reached 1,206 in February 2011, a 12.3 per cent increase compared to the 1,074 sales in February
2010, and an increase of 85.5 per cent compared to the 650 sales in February 2009. The benchmark price of an apartment
property increased 2.2 per cent from February 2010 to $399,397.
Attached property sales in February 2011 totalled 489, a 17.5 per cent increase compared to the 416 sales in February 2010,
and a 101.2 per cent increase from the 243 attached properties sold in February 2009. The benchmark price of an attached unit
increased 2.3 per cent between February 2010 and 2011 to $507,118.REBGV reports increased housing demand in FebruaVANCOUVER, B.C. – March 2, 2011 – Demand for detached homes continues to be strong across Greater Vancouver, wiparticularly high sales volumes occurring in Richmond and Vancouver Westside.