Karel Palla & Darryl Sjerven

Strong Housing Demand Forecast Through 2017

BCREA 2016 First Quarter Housing Forecast Update

Vancouver, BC – January 28, 2016. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) released 2016 First Quarter Housing Forecast Update today.

Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) rresidential sales in the province are forecast to edge back 6.2 per cent to 96,100 units this year, after reaching 102,517 units in 2015. Strong consumer demand is expected to push MLS® residential sales up by 2 per cent to 98,000 units in 2017. /p>

Housing demand in the province is being supported by a relatively robust economy, leading to strong employment growth and rising wages. In addition, net interprovincial migration is on an upswing as many Albertans look to BC for job opportunities. BC home sales are forecast to remain well above the ten-year average of 83,200 units over the next two years.

“The inventory of homes for sale is now at its lowest level in almost a decade,” said...

December Smashes Home Sales Record and 2015 Enters Record Book

Vancouver, BC – January 15, 2016. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a record number of home sales were recorded in the province for the month of December. A total of 6,590 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) last month, up 29.8 per cent from the same month the previous year. Total sales dollar volume hit a record $4.62 billion for the month of December, up 55.4 per cent compared to the previous year.

The average MLS® residential price in the province climbed above the $700,000 threshold for the first time in BC last month, rising 19.7 from December 2014 to $700,943.

“The 2015 housing market finished in dramatic fashion, with record demand for month of December,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. “BC home sales breached the 100,000 unit threshold in 2015, and it was only the third time on record that this high...

Stats Centre Reports - December 2015 – Vancouver East, Vancouver West

Metro Vancouver home sales set an all-time record in 2015