B.C. home sales jumped in October, as the impact of decreasing interest rates started working its way into the province’s residential market.
A total of 7,119 residential unit sales were recorded in October 2024, a 33.5-per-cent increase from October 2023, according to the British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA).
The total sales dollar volume was $6.9 billion, a 33.8-per-cent increase from the same time the previous year.
“While it took longer than expected, a recovery in home sales to more normal levels has seemingly arrived,” BCREA chief economist Brendon Ogmundson said in a Monday (Nov. 25) news release.
“Across B.C., we saw significant month-over-month increases in activity as buyers returned to the market after a long high-interest-rate-driven hiatus.”
The Bank of Canada has reduced its key interest rate incrementally from five per cent in April to 3.75 per cent last month, resulting in lower borrowing costs that are fuelling a resurgence in market activity.
However, while the number and volume of sales increased, the BCREA noted that there was only a slight increase in the average multiple listing service (MLS) price, which increased by 0.3 per cent to $970,845 last month compared to an average price of $968,256 in October 2023.
Unit sales were also eight-per-cent lower than the ten-year average for October.
Looking at year-to-date data for B.C., the residential sales dollar volume was down 0.2 per cent to $62.9 billion, compared with the same period in 2023. Residential unit sales were down by 1.1 per cent year-over-year at 64,176 units, while the average MLS residential price was up 0.9 per cent to $980,280.
In Greater Vancouver specifically, the average home price was down 4.1 per cent to $1,250,329 in October 2024 year-over-year, while unit sales were up 32.6 per cent to 2,632.
