REBGV Market Update For December 2020 – Real Estate Market Ends The Year With A Bang!
A notable feature of the December 2020 market report released by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) was the December home buying spree which helped the market rebound from a weak 2019, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
In her end of year comments about the Greater Vancouver real estate market, Colette Gerber REBGV Chair said, ” When the pandemic began in March, the housing market came to a near standstill. We knew, however, that shelter needs don’t go away in times of crisis, they intensify. The real estate community worked closely with our regulatory bodies and public health officials in the spring to ensure appropriate precautions and protocols were implemented so BC REALTORS® could help residents safely meet their housing needs.”
The REBGV reported that residential home sales in the region totalled 30,944 in 2020, a 22.1% from the 25,351 sales recorded in 2019, and a 25.7% increase from the 24,619 homes sold in 2018.
Home Sales
In December 2020, there were 3,093 residential property sales. This represented a 53.4% increase from the 2,016 sales in December 2019 and an increase of 0.9% from November 2020 when 3,064 homes were sold.
The number of detached properties sold was 1,026, 71.3% more than December 2019.
The number of apartments sold was 1,474, 40% more than December 2019.
The number of attached properties sold was 593, 62.9% more than December 2019.
Home Listings
There were 2,409 new listings of detached, attached and apartment properties for December 2020 added to the MLS®. This represented a 51.7% increase compared to the 1,588 homes listed in December 2019, and a 40.8% decrease compared to November 2020 when 4,068 homes were listed.
The total number of homes listed for sale in December was 8,538. This was a 0.8% decrease compared to December 2019 (8,603) and a 23.2% decrease compared to November 2020 (11,118).
Sales-To-Active-Listings Ratio
This is a good indication of the supply and demand forces in the market. Downward pressure on home prices can occur when the ratio is below 12% for a sustained period, and there is upward pressure when the ratio is above 20% for a number of months.
For all property types, the ratio in December was 36.2%, indicative of a seller’s market. When broken down by property types, the ratio was:
2 % for detached homes
4 % for townhomes
331 % for condos
Home Prices
The MLS Home Price index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver was $1,047,400 in December. This was 5.4% more than December 2019.
When broken down by property types:
Detached home price $1,554,600. A 10.2% increase when compared to December 2019 and 1.0% increase when compared to November 2020.
Condo price $676,500. A 2.6% increase when compared to December 2019 and unchanged when compared to November 2020.
Attached home price $813,900. A 4.9% increase when compared to December 2019 and 0.1% decrease when compared to November 2020.
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