The Fraser Valley?s affordability and lifestyle a magnet for home buyers
Randy Shore
The Province
B.C.’s real estate market is showing extraordinary resilience in extraordinary times, with wild increases in sales across the province.
“The Fraser Valley continues to be a magnet for families because of its affordability and lifestyle,” said Chris Shields, president of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board. “I think a lot more people are telecommuting as the work environment has changed.”
With head offices sprinkled around the region, people can live in Abbotsford and work for a company headquartered in Burnaby, he said.
Home sales came roaring back in the Fraser Valley in June, dragging prices of detached homes, townhouses and apartments higher.
More than 1,700 properties sold last month, a 113 per cent increase from May and a 31 per cent increase from last year at this time. Sales were just a shade below the ten-year average for June.
Very low interest rates and pent-up demand drove much of the rebound, said Shields. Detached homes were selling after an average of just 31 days on the market.
People may also have been motivated to pull the trigger before tighter mortgage insurance rules took effect July 1, said Shields. People are also feeling more comfortable with social distancing and virtual tools in the sales process.
“June’s numbers clearly indicate that the market is functioning in this challenging new environment and we’re returning to more typical activity levels,” he said.
Prices rose the most for detached homes (3.6 per cent), followed by apartments (3.3 per cent) and townhouses (1.9 per cent).
People who were wary of buying in the Okanagan during the pandemic were picking their spots to buy in June. Townhouses that sold in the North Okanagan last month had been on the market for an average of 106 days, nearly 50 per cent longer than usual.
Likewise for Shuswap, where townhouses sold in June averaged 111 days on the market.
Prices for detached homes rose between one and 3.5 per cent across the entire region, while apartment prices were up between 3.5 and 4.9 per cent.
Home sales rebounded by more than 64 per cent in June compared to May in Greater Vancouver, though sales volume was about 20 per cent below the ten-year average.
Steep price declines predicted by some pundits failed to materialize despite the disruption caused by COVID-19.
“Last summer home prices bottomed out after a three-year decline and since then they have levelled out,” said Colette Gerber, president of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. “As inventory has come in, we’ve been in a balanced market, so prices are not going to go down.”
“We saw large sales volume from January to March and these people need a place to live,” she said. “Your housing needs don’t go away, families are growing and people need space to work from home.”
Sunday Hawthorne bought a home in Vancouver last month and marvelled at both the selection and the relaxed pace of the process.
“Properties aren’t selling at breakneck speed, there were no multiple offer situations and no one was bidding over the asking price,” she said.
The pandemic may also be driving buyers further from the city.
“On Vancouver Island we have definitely seen a surge in rural property sales,” said Kevin Reid, president of the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. “I think COVID has reminded people of how much time they spend in their homes and maybe some people are deciding to change the way that they live.”
Like many realtors, Reid had a number of sales fall apart after the lockdown announcement by the provincial government on March 18.
“For almost two months realtors did almost no business unless a person was committed to a sale and would literally have no place to live if they didn’t buy something,” he said.
However, sales surged by 59 per cent in June as people became more comfortable with physical distancing, he said.
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