Metro Vancouver Real Estate Sales Pace Eases Off

Sales in Metro Vancouver’s real estate markets started 2010 at a more relaxed pace than the torrid end of 2009, according to statistics released Tuesday by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.

Realtors recorded 1,923 sales through the Multiple Listing Service in January, which was more than double the number of sales in the same month a year ago, but off almost 24 per cent from the pace of sales in the previous month.

And a flood of new listings have helped change the supply and demand dynamic, the board noted in its press release.
Homeowners put 5,147 properties on the market in January, which was 139 per cent more than were listed in December, and was 39 per cent higher than in January 2009.

Jake Moldowan, president elect of the Vancouver board said there is “closer alignment between supply and demand in today’s housing market. At 18 per cent, the sales-to-active-listings ratio in January is approximately 10 per cent lower than we’ve seen in our market over the last six months.”

The total number of active listings in Metro Vancouver’s inventory of unsold homes sits at 10,218 units, up 14 per cent from December, but down from the same month a year ago.

The benchmark price Metro Vancouver single-family homes, the average value of typical homes sold, hit $788,499 in January, some 20 per cent above January a year ago, when prices were still falling during the economic downturn.

Source: BY DERRICK PENNER, VANCOUVER SUNFEBRUARY 2, 2010 3:21 PM