VANCOUVER, B.C.
– December 02, 2008 – November reductions in home
sales and prices have helped improve affordability in Greater
Vancouver. However, November also saw a corresponding decrease
in the number of new homes coming onto the market.
In its most recent statistics release,
the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports
that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver declined
69.7 per cent in November 2008 to 874 from the 2,883 sales
recorded in November 2007.
Residential benchmark prices, as calculated
by the MLSLink Housing Price Index®, declined 12.8 per
cent between May and November 2008, amounting to an 8.3
per cent year-to-date price reduction for detached, attached
and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver between November
2007 and 2008. In May 2008, the overall residential benchmark
price was $568,411, compared to $495,704 in November 2008.
“Times of turmoil, from which
we always emerge, offer excellent opportunities to buy quality
real estate,” says REBGV president, Dave Watt.“For
those whose personal finances allow them to get involved,
there are opportunities in today’s housing market
that have not been seen in many years.
“The local real estate market
is not immune to the current economic challenges globally;
however, Canada’s disciplined lending structure has
kept the mortgage landscape steady in these uncertain times.”
New listings for detached, attached
and apartment properties declined 10.8 per cent to 3,012
in November 2008 compared to November 2007, when 3,377 new
units were listed. Active listings in November declined
4.7 per cent to 18,348 from the 19,257 active listings in
Greater Vancouver in October 2008.
Sales of detached properties in November
2008 declined 69.8 per cent to 322 from the 1,067 units
sold during the same period in 2007. The benchmark price
for detached properties declined 8.6 per cent from November
2007 to $666,525. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for
a detached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 13.6
per cent.
Sales of apartment properties declined
67.9 per cent last month to 410 compared to 1,276 sales
in November 2007. The benchmark price of an apartment property
declined 8.6 per cent from November 2007 to $342,315. Since
May 2008, the benchmark price for an apartment property
in Greater Vancouver has declined 12.2 per cent.
Attached property sales in November
2008 decreased 73.7 per cent to 142, compared with the 540
sales in November 2007. The benchmark price of an attached
unit declined 6.4 per cent between November 2007 and 2008
to $426,287. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for an
attached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 11 per
cent.
