Hello Clients, Friends and Readers! What a start to November it’s been. Decent weather all around, an encouraging result in the USA and news that vaccines are getting closer (albeit still far from a tangible effect).
October was generally still a busy market but I had a lot of clients mention that they’ve noticed fewer new listings, and fewer listings worthwhile of consideration. I’m not surprised that we’re seeing fewer listings right now: it’s common to see the market slow down as we get closer to the holidays and with the market being busy since April, market fatigue is setting in earlier than it normally would. Typically the market slows down in July and August while everyone enjoys summer but that didn’t happen this year due to some lifestyles changes brought on by COVID, so instead we’re starting to see the market slow down a little earlier in the Fall. There are still a lot of keen Buyers out there so if something good were listed then it will garner a lot of interest and should sell fairly quickly, but I’m also seeing a lot of units be listed above their market value and buyers haven’t been biting when units are priced too high.
It’s getting to the point in the market where my advice for people who need to sell before buying are likely better off waiting until next year – selling is still generally easy but if we’re seeing fewer new listings come up every week then they won’t have many options to consider purchasing, so they’re likely better off selling early in the new year so they will be ready to buy their next property as we see the increase in Spring inventory. Having said that, everyone’s situation is unique, and my advice could different depending on what property you have to sell and what property you’re looking to buy.
With COVID still keeping folks at home for work, I anticipate the desire to purchase bigger properties will continue into the new year, so expect to see the market pick up again in January/February.
I still have a lot of clients who are keen to jump into their next property so if you’ve been thinking about listing, especially if you don’t necessarily have to purchase your next home immediately after, now is a good time to consider listing your property.
Overall, Buyers looking to purchase in the 2 bedroom market (specially, the entry level 2 bedroom market) as well as the detached house market need to be prepared for multiple offer scenarios, but good listings that are priced well in each market will still have a lot of interest.
Onto the stats:
Vancouver West Real Estate Stats up to and including October 2020
The HPI Price for detached houses on the Westside increased slightly but townhouses and condos continued to remain steady. HPI Price of condos and townhouses on the Westside have effectively been steady since mid 2019 – an encouraging sign given the market and worldwide changes we’ve seen in that time. The HPI Price for detached houses sits just above $3.11-million. while townhouses are at $1.15-million and condos are at $783k.
The sales to active ratio increased slightly for everything except 1 bedroom condos. Overall, the Westside market is not as busy as the Eastside, though prices are still higher on the Westside. The number of new listings declined this past month as did total inventory. The median days on market is still averaging around 2 weeks so units are still generally selling fairly quickly.
HPI Price for Vancouver West
*Unfortunately HPI Price can’t be any more specific than Condo/Townhouse/House*
Median Percentage of Original Price for Vancouver West
New Listings for Vancouver West
Total Inventory for Vancouver West
Total Sales for Vancouver West
Sales to Active Ratio for Vancouver West
Median Days on Market for Vancouver West
East Vancouver Real Estate Stats up to and including October 2020
The HPI Price for East Van detached houses increased slightly, but decreased for townhouses and condos. The HPI Price for detached houses is just over $1.5-million, and sits at $900k for townhouses and just under $600k for condos.
Like I mentioned above, the market is starting to slow down. The number of new listings each month has been climbing since April, but we saw a drop this past month in each market and the sales to active ratio has been fairly steady over the last month, but it is trending down as well. Total inventory has been somewhat steady since August, but even that will start to decline as people cancel their listings for the holidays. The median days on market has remained somewhere within 14 days of listing since June, which isn’t surprising given that most units are selling after the first week of showings.
HPI Price for East Vancouver
*Unfortunately HPI Price can’t be any more specific than Condo/Townhouse/House*
Median Percentage of Original Price for East Vancouver
New Listings for East Vancouver
Total Inventory for East Vancouver
Total Sales for East Vancouver
Sales to Active Ratio for East Vancouver
Median Days on Market for East Vancouver
Finally…
It sounds like these rock bottom mortgage rates will be staying low for the time being, so there isn’t a huge push to lock into a rate, but you’ll still do yourself a giant favour by chatting with a mortgage broker now to find out what you can afford, what you need to do to improve your file and if there’s anything important to know (your mortgage penalty rate? options to re-finance? etc).
Feel free to contact me – no question is stupid or too soon to ask: kristi@realestatevancity.ca or 778-387-7371.
Sending you health and happiness as we move into a strange, socially distanced holiday season. Hopefully the strict measures in place now make a difference over the next few weeks. And please continue supporting your local East Van businesses when you’re thinking about buying your friends and family Christmas Gifts: restaurant gift cards, service gift cards, locally made products and of course charities for toys, food and warm clothes – there are going to be a lot of people who need extra assistance this year.
– Kristi