According to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV), there were 3,226 residential property sales in the region in July 2016, a drop of 18.9 per cent year-over-year and 26.7 per cent lower than June 2016’s 4,400 sales. This is the first month since January where Vancouver home sales did not surpass 4,000 in a month.
“After several months of record-breaking sales activity, home buyer demand returned to more historically normal levels in July,” said Dan Morrison, REBGV president, in a press release.
In June 2016, transactions were 6.5 per cent higher than the 10-year sales average for the month.
“Home sale activity showed some moderating signs in late June and this carried into July,” added Morrison. “We’ll wait and watch over the next few months to see if this marks the return of more normal market trends.”
There were 5,241 new listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Metro Vancouver in July 2016, which is 2.5 per cent higher compared to the 5,112 units listed one year earlier, but this number was 10.8 per cent lower than June 2016, when 5,875 properties were listed.
The total number of properties currently listed on Metro Vancouver’s MLS system is 8,351, a 27.4 per cent dip compared to July 2015’s 11,505 units, but 6.9 per cent above June 2016 levels, when there were 7,812 homes listed.
The sales-to-active listings ratio for July 2016 is 38.6 per cent. Analysists say that downward pressure on home prices generally occur when the ratio falls below 12 per cent, meanwhile home prices experience upward pressure when the ratio reaches the 20 to 22 per cent range for an extended period of time.
The MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark price across all residential property types in Metro Vancouver climbed 32.6 per cent year-over-year to $930,400.
July 2016 saw 1,077 detached property transactions in Metro Vancouver, which is 30.9 per cent lower than the 1,559 recorded in July 2015. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 38 per cent year-over-year to $1,578,300.
In attached properties, July 2016 saw 547 sales, which is a decrease of 20.7 per cent compared to 690 in July 2015. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 29.4 per cent year-over-year to $669,000.
Meanwhile, sales of apartment properties fell 7.3 per cent year-over-year to 1,602 in July 2016. The benchmark price of an apartment unit jumped 27.4 per cent year-over-year to $510,600.
