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Greater Vancouver December home sales surge 88 per cent year-over-year

Real estate sales were brisk in December, according to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV).

In what may be an encouraging sign to homeowners concerned about dips in their recent provincial property assessments, the agency says December sales were 9.5 per cent above the 10-year average, and a whopping 88.1 per cent up year-over-year.

READ MORE: Metro Vancouver real estate rebound levels off, prices hold flat in November

The REBGV also confirmed Friday what most homeowners already know: 2019 was a weak year for the market. While sales for the entire year were up a thin 3.2 per cent over 2018, they were down five per cent over 2017, and down 7.6 per cent from the 10-year average.


“We didn’t see typical seasonal patterns in 2019. Homebuyer demand was quieter in the normally busy spring season and it picked up in the second half of the year,” REBGV president Ashley Smith said in a media release.

“In terms of home values, prices dipped between two and four per cent across the region last year depending on property type.”

Inventory also continued to slim out, with 8,603 properties listed on the market, down 16.3 per cent from December 2018 and down 20 per cent from November 2019.

Greater Vancouver real estate prices, 1977-present.
 Greater Vancouver real estate prices, 1977-present. Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver

The benchmark price of a detached home across the region was $1.423 million, down four per cent from November 2018 but up 0.6 per cent from November 2019.

The benchmark price of a condo across the region was $656,700, down 2.7 per cent year-over-year and up 0.8 per cent from November 2019.

After a series of month-to-month declines, prices began edging slowly upward this fall.


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