As the year winds to a close, it is common to see the housing market slow down with December typically showing the lowest activity as buyers and sellers alike take a break for the holidays. This year in many ways, November met expectations and saw greater activity for pre-sale homes.

In our latest report prepared by MLA Advisory, we share that inventory in Greater Vancouver continues to decrease as 2017 comes to an end. Total listings are down nearly 7.5 per cent in November compared to last month. The total number of sales across Greater Vancouver has also declined by over 7 per cent since October. The greatest sales decrease were townhomes, down 21 per cent compared to the previous month.

IT’S A SELLERS MARKET

Over the past 12 months, our market has seen an increase of over 14 per cent in Home Price Index for detached homes, apartments and townhomes combined. Apartments continue to see a shortage of inventory and November had the lowest number of listings on the market this year, down over 9 per cent compared to October.

A year-to-date comparison shows sales activity is up over 26 per cent compared to November 2016.

“Property sales remain very active for the attached market and we expect this to continue until the end of the year, says Ryan Lalonde, President & Partner at MLA Canada. “Buyers will continue to purchase before the new mortgage stress test takes full effect and with resale inventory continuing to decline we will see upward pressure on price.”

BURNABY OUR MOST ACTIVE CITY

Our report features a spotlight on the Brentwood area. Burnaby continues to lead the resale market with the highest price growth for apartments since September with Brentwood one of the strongest concrete condominium markets over the last five years in Western Canada. In addition, Brentwood is one of the highest performing real estate investment markets in the country as prices have nearly doubled over the last five years to $1,008 per square foot.

The full redevelopment of Brentwood Town Centre includes Juneau, a collection of 147 concrete residences, and Lumina Brentwood, modern living with over 900 condos and townhomes.

For a summary of pre-sale homes and resale market trends, read MLA Advisory’s November 2017 Monthly Report.