June home sales across Greater Vancouver were the lowest since the year 2000 as the benchmark price for all homes in the region slipped below $1 million for the first time in two years.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) says 2,077 homes sold in June, down 14.4 per cent year over year and down 21.3 per cent from May of this year.
Sales were also 34.7 per cent below the 10-year average for June and the lowest for the month in 19 years, according to the board.
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The pace of new listings on the market slackened, with a 10 per cent drop in new homes added to the market from June 2018, said the REBGV.
However, inventory continued to stack up, with just under 15,000 homes listed for sale — up 25.3 per cent from the same month last year and up a modest 1.9 per cent from May 2019, it said.
As sales continue to soften so, too, do prices.
The benchmark price for all home types was $998,700 in June, the lowest it has been since May 2017, the REBGV said.
For detached homes across the region, the benchmark price was $1,423,500, down 10.9 per cent year over year and 9.2 per cent over three years but up 0.1 per cent from May.
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For apartments, the benchmark price was $654,700 in June, down 8.9 per cent year over year and 1.4 per cent from May.
Drilling deeper into numbers shows some wilder swings in pricing.
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The benchmark price for a detached home in West Vancouver was down 12.9 per cent from last June. It was also down 13.1 per cent in Richmond, 14 per cent on Vancouver’s west side and 12.6 per cent in South Burnaby.
The benchmark price for detached homes was also below $1 million in Ladner, Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam and Bowen Island, according to the REBGV.
Condo prices, which have better resisted the cool-down, also saw significant movement in some sub-regions.
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The benchmark price for an apartment in West Vancouver was down 18.3 per cent year over year. On Vancouver’s west side, it was down 11.7 per cent, while it was down 11.4 per cent in Port Moody.
The benchmark price of a condo was below $500,000 in Ladner, Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam and Tsawwassen and under $600,000 in East Vancouver, Coquitlam, New Westminster and North Vancouver.
The REBGV said the sluggish market means buyers are seeing the most choice in five years but that sellers continue to hold on, hoping for “yesterday’s value for their homes.”
You can view the full statistical package from the REBGV here.
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