OCTOBER 2023 METRO VANCOUVER HOUSING MARKET HIGHLIGHTS
Metro Vancouver housing market holds steady in October
Source: REBGV
Picture source: REBGV
An increase in newly listed properties is providing more choice to home buyers across Metro Vancouver1, but sales remain below long-term averages.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential sales2 in the region totalled 1,996 in October 2023, a 3.7 per cent increase from the 1,924 sales recorded in October 2022. This total is 29.5 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average (2,832) for October.
“With properties coming to market at a rate roughly five per cent above the ten-year seasonal average, there seems to be a continuation of the renewed interest on the part of sellers to participate in the market we’ve been watching this fall. Counterbalancing this increase in supply, however, is the fact sales remain almost 30 per cent below their ten-year seasonal average, which tells us demand is not as strong as we might expect this time of year.”
Andrew Lis, REBGV director of economics and data analytics
There were 4,664 detached, attached and apartment properties newly listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Metro Vancouver in October 2023. This represents a 15.4 per cent increase compared to the 4,043 properties listed in October 2022 and is 4.8 per cent above the 10-year seasonal average (4,449) for the month.
The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the MLS® system in Metro Vancouver is 11,599, a 12.6 per cent increase compared to October 2022 (10,305). This change is also 0.6 per cent above the 10-year seasonal average (11,526).
Across all detached, attached and apartment property types, the sales-to-active listings ratio for October 2023 is 17.9 per cent. By property type, the ratio is 12.9 per cent for detached homes, 20.9 per cent for attached, and 21.5 per cent for apartments.
Analysis of the historical data suggests downward pressure on home prices occurs when the ratio dips below 12 per cent for a sustained period, while home prices often experience upward pressure when it surpasses 20 per cent over several months.
“With more supply in the form of resale inventory, and weaker demand in the form of slower sales, we’ve seen market conditions overall adjust towards more balanced conditions. It’s noteworthy that the multifamily segment remains more active than the detached segment at this time,”
Lis said.
“While the highest borrowing costs we’ve seen in over a decade continue to constrain affordability, a silver lining for buyers is that price increases have abated with these more balanced market conditions, meaning purchasing power is holding steady for the moment.”
Picture source: REBGV
The MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver is currently $1,196,500. This represents a 4.4 per cent increase over October 2022 and a 0.6 per cent decrease compared to September 2023.
Sales of detached homes in October 2023 reached 577, a 0.7 per cent decrease from the 581 detached sales recorded in October 2022. The benchmark price for a detached home is $2,001,400. This represents a 5.8 per cent increase from October 2022 and a 0.8 per cent decrease compared to September 2023.
Sales of apartment homes reached 1,044 in October 2023, a 4.9 per cent increase compared to the 995 sales in October 2022. The benchmark price of an apartment home is $770,200. This represents a 6.4 per cent increase from October 2022 and a 0.2 per cent increase compared to September 2023.
Attached home sales in October 2023 totalled 356, a 6.6 per cent increase compared to the 334 sales in October 2022. The benchmark price of a townhouse3 is $1,100,500. This represents a 6 per cent increase from October 2022 and a 0.2 per cent increase compared to September 2023.
1 Areas covered by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver include: Bowen Island, Burnaby, Coquitlam, Maple Ridge, New Westminster, North Vancouver, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Richmond, South Delta, Squamish, Sunshine Coast, Vancouver, West Vancouver, and Whistler.
2 REBGV is now including multifamily and land sales and listings in this monthly report. Previously, we only included detached, attached, and apartment sales, and these additional categories, which typically account for roughly one to two per cent of total MLS® activity per month, are being included for completeness in our reporting.
3 In calculating the MLS® HPI, Altus Group uses a narrower definition of “attached” properties than is used by REBGV in our “attached” statistics, preferring to use “townhouse” as their benchmark property.
CLICK HERE – Full REBGV October 2023 Housing Market Update
Vancouver BC – November 2, 2023
Have a look at the REBGV October 2023 Market Update Insights!
- DOWNLOAD the REBGV October 2023 Housing Market Update CLICK HERE
- See the Monthly Market Stats CLICK HERE
- For more market information from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver CLICK HERE
- To view Geoff Jarman’s Listings CLICK HERE
