BALANCED MARKET OFFERS THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS

The Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) recorded 722 unit sales and 4,015 active listings (all property types) board-wide on the MLS® System in October 2024, up 42 per cent and 12%, respectively.

In the single-family category (excluding acreage and waterfront), 346 homes sold in October, up 45% from one year ago and eight per cent from September. Sales of condo apartments last month came in at 80, increasing by 36 per cent year over year and 16% from September. In the row/townhouse category, 83 units changed hands in October, up 43 per cent from one year ago and down 11% from September.

Active listings of single-family homes were 1,352 in October, up from the 1,157 posted one year ago. VIREB’s inventory of condo apartments was 366 last month, up from 307 in October 2023. There were 299 row/townhouses for sale last month compared to 265 the previous year.

Although board-wide active listings of all property types dropped from September, they were still at their second-highest level since 2019. Slowing inflation, rate cuts, and a strong Vancouver Island economy that’s outpacing the rest of the province have revitalized VIREB’s housing market.

“We saw healthy sales increases in October, ranging from 36 per cent for condo apartments to 45 per cent for single-family homes,“ says VIREB CEO Jason Yochim. “With an absorption rate of 18% and around five months of inventory, the VIREB market is currently in balanced territory.”

Balanced markets with healthy inventory levels offer buyers and sellers the best of both worlds. Current listings aren’t flying off the market, but they’re also not lingering for too long.

“It looks like we’ll close out 2024 on a good note, with about 7,400 sales, significantly higher than the 7,114 sales seen in 2023,” adds Yochim.

Moving on to prices, the board-wide benchmark price (MLS® Home Price Index) of a single-family home was $777,900 in October 2024, up one per cent from one year ago and $300 less than in September. In the apartment category, the benchmark price was $395,600 last month, down three percent from the previous October and two per cent from September. The benchmark price of a townhouse in October was $546,700, a slight decrease from one year ago and a small uptick from September.

In Campbell River, the benchmark price of a single-family home was $701,400 last month, up six per cent from the previous year. The Comox Valley’s year-over-year benchmark price rose by one percent to $838,400. In the Cowichan Valley, the benchmark price was $769,300, a one percent decrease from October 2023. Nanaimo’s year-over-year benchmark price dropped slightly to $809,000, while the Parksville-Qualicum area saw its benchmark price increase by one percent to $896,400. The cost of a benchmark single-family home in Port Alberni was $502,100, up two per cent from the previous year. For the North Island, the benchmark price of a single-family home rose by six per cent to $430,300.

Article courtesy of the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board