October Home Sales Reach a 6 Year Peak
Buoyed by sales activity in Vancouver and the South Coast, home sales in British Columbia reached a 6 year high last month. The highest number of home sales since 2003 was reached largely due to the hottest markets in BC which include Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and Victoria. October's figures show 8,624 sales were cleared which is a 115 per cent increase from October of 2008. A total of 44 per cent of these sales were recorded in Greater Vancouver making it one of Canada's most active real estate markets.
Metro Vancouver saw a staggering 171 per cent rise in sales from October 2008, with 3,767 sales this October. Similarly, the Fraser Valley recorded 1,583 sales which is an even more impressive 120 per cent increase from the same month a year ago. While most of the activity was in Vancouver and the South Coast, Victoria also had a very good month with a 135 per cent jump from last October meaning approximately 1,590 sales were completed in the area.
Most experts remain cautious about these figures as many communities with resource-oriented employment are still dealing with a weaker real estate market. Nevertheless, the larger urban centers around Vancouver make it an ideal place for the economy to begin rebuilding and this has been evidenced by the improvement in real estate activity. Vancouver buyers have been credited with some of the improvement in real estate markets in the interior as recreational-property purchases have kept these markets afloat.
However, many real estate experts are already predicting an end to the market upturns in Greater Vancouver. Many believe that the pace of sales that has been set in the final quarter of 2009 cannot be maintained since the sales in these markets have been mostly driven by a combination of built-up demand and low interest rates. At the moment, real estate markets around Vancouver have been propped up, to a certain extent, by this pent-up demand and because this demand has been satisfied very quickly, the well may run dry, so to speak. As the market improves, prices rise making properties less attractive to buyers.
Metro Vancouver saw a staggering 171 per cent rise in sales from October 2008, with 3,767 sales this October. Similarly, the Fraser Valley recorded 1,583 sales which is an even more impressive 120 per cent increase from the same month a year ago. While most of the activity was in Vancouver and the South Coast, Victoria also had a very good month with a 135 per cent jump from last October meaning approximately 1,590 sales were completed in the area.
Most experts remain cautious about these figures as many communities with resource-oriented employment are still dealing with a weaker real estate market. Nevertheless, the larger urban centers around Vancouver make it an ideal place for the economy to begin rebuilding and this has been evidenced by the improvement in real estate activity. Vancouver buyers have been credited with some of the improvement in real estate markets in the interior as recreational-property purchases have kept these markets afloat.
However, many real estate experts are already predicting an end to the market upturns in Greater Vancouver. Many believe that the pace of sales that has been set in the final quarter of 2009 cannot be maintained since the sales in these markets have been mostly driven by a combination of built-up demand and low interest rates. At the moment, real estate markets around Vancouver have been propped up, to a certain extent, by this pent-up demand and because this demand has been satisfied very quickly, the well may run dry, so to speak. As the market improves, prices rise making properties less attractive to buyers.
posted by VancouverResidence
