Market Update
August 4, 2010
Homebuyers and sellers less active in July
Home sales activity in Greater Vancouver was quieter last month than most Julys over the past decade, with residential sales, prices, and the number of homes listed for sale trending downward in recent months.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that the number of residential property sales in Greater Vancouver totalled 2,255 in July 2010. This represents a 45.2 per cent decline from the 4,114 sales in July 2009, the highest selling July ever recorded, and a 24.1 per cent decline compared to June 2010.
Looking back further, last month's residential sales represent a 3.7 per cent increase over the 2,174 residential sales in July 2008, a 41.8 per cent decline compared to July 2007's 3,873 sales, and a 17.5 per cent decline compared to July 2006's 2,732 sales.
"With the pace of home sales and listings easing off in our market, we've begun to see a levelling of home prices from the record highs seen in the spring, creating greater affordability," Jake Moldowan, REBGV president said. "Activity in today's marketplace is clearly trending in favour of buyers."
The number of properties listed for sale on the market has been trending downward since spring, with 4,138 new listings in July compared to April's peak of 7,648. New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) declined 17.9 per cent in July 2010 compared to July 2009, when 5,041 properties were listed for sale.
At 16,431, the total number of property listings on the MLS® in July declined 6.5 per cent compared to last month and increased 33 per cent compared to July 2009.
"It's currently taking home sellers who work with a REALTOR®, on average, 45 days to sell their property, which is a historically healthy timeframe for people on both sides of a transaction," Moldowan said.
Since spring, housing prices have decreased 2.8 per cent compared to the all-time high reached in April when the residential benchmark price was $593,419. Over the last 12 months, the MLSLink® Housing Price Index (HPI) benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver increased 9.1 per cent to $577,074 in July 2010 from $528,821 in July 2009.
Sales of detached properties in July 2010 reached 908, a decrease of 43.7 per cent from the 1,614 detached sales recorded in July 2009 and a 9.8 per cent increase from the 827 units sold in July 2008. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 11.5 per cent from July 2009 to $793,193.
Sales of apartment properties reached 979 in July 2010, a decline of 42.7 per cent compared to the 1,708 sales in July 2009 and an increase of 1.3 per cent compared to the 966 sales in July 2008.The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 6.2 per cent from July 2009 to $387,879.
Attached property sales in July 2010 totalled 368, a decline of 53.5 per cent compared to the 792 sales in July 2009 and a 3.4 per cent decline from the 381 attached properties sold in July 2008. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 8.6 per cent between July 2009 and 2010 to $490,995.
- Click here to download the current's Housing Price Index HPI Greater Vancouver PDF
- Click Here to see All the Press Release on Downtown Vancouver Real Estate
- 10-year plan to make Vancouver the world's greenest city by 2020. - View the pdf of 'Vancouver 2020 - A Bright Green Future' - here.
- "Vancouverism" is fast replacing "Manhattanism" as the maximum power setting for shaping the humane mixed-use city, important ideas for a new era of scarce energy and diminished natural resources.
VANCOUVER CONVENTION CENTRE EXPANSION PROJECT - VCCEP:
The vision has quickly become a reality. The New building and its accompanying two acre public plaza are located just west of the existing convention centre facility. A 200ft. (60m) glass-enclosed connector will link the east and west buildings, providing stunning harbour views and complete integration of both wings. It's been no small task. The $883 million dollar expansion encompasses 1.1 million square feet - approximatelly 4 city blocks. Of this, 40 % is built over water. The new space will boast 52 break-out meetings rooms, a new adjacent 400-Room Hotel, and 83,000 sq.ft. (7,711 sq.m) of restaurants, retailers and attractions. By increasing the existing meeting place threefold, it is estimated that the new facility will generate an additional $107 million annually in delegate spending.
The VCCEP takes the Vancouver convention centre's commitment to environmental stewardship to new levels by incorporating numerous groundbraking innovations in sustainable design. One of the expansion's most highly anticipated features is a six-acre "living roof", one of the most ambitious project of its kind worlwide. About 30 % of the roof has already been planted with some 400,000 seedlings and thousand of seeds. Plants will be watered via clever irrigation systems that makes use of drainage and water recovery mechanisms that will collect rainwater. Architect Hemstock says: "We want to promote bees, ants, and other insects and birds to bring them back to the downtown"
Olympic spotlight aside, the project will provide an inspirational example of architecture innovation, functional design and a commitment to sustainability.
