Home sales in BC showing a strong increase
Steve Randall
Canadian Real Estate Wealth
Things are looking up for the housing market in British Columbia with sales showing a strong increase in January compared to a year earlier.
The British Columbia Real Estate Association says that 4,426 MLS sales occurred last month, up 23.7% year-over-year, while the average residential price gained 9.1% to $725,370.
Total sales dollar volume in January was $3.2 billion, a 35% increase over 2019.
“Housing markets in BC are off to a strong start in 2020,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “We expect a much more typical year of home sales in 2020 as markets recover from the policy-induced slowdown of the past two years.”
Listings fell 12.6% to 25,790 units while the ratio of sales to active residential listings increased to 17.2% from just 12.1% a year earlier.
“While many markets are showing strong signs of recovery, the struggling forestry sector is having a clear impact on housing demand, particularly in the North and parts of Vancouver Island,” added Ogmundson.
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