Multi-family buyers smash Vancouver sales records in final months of 2021: Zonda Urban<\/a><\/strong>\r\n <\/div>\nLast month, 5,573 new listings were added to the market, more than the 5,191 properties added in February last year. Still, there were 7,062 active listings in Greater Vancouver at the end of February, an all-time low for the month. On average, 251 listings were added a day in February during the first week, rising to an average of 350 new listings a day in the last week of the month.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, barring a huge increase in listings, the start of the spring buying season should continue to see the higher prices and multiple offers that characterize a lack of supply amidst high demand,\u201d said Skipworth.<\/p>\n
The benchmark price for a townhome was up about six per cent \u2013 more than $64,000 \u2013 from January to $1,090,000. There was just one month\u2019s worth of townhome supply across Greater Vancouver in February. By comparison, there was three month\u2019s worth of detached housing in February as the benchmark price hit $2,044,800.<\/p>\n
Rising rates won\u2019t dent affordability too much<\/h3>\n
With home inventory still low and the Bank of Canada now into it\u2019s rate hike cycle, Skipworth doesn\u2019t expect sales this year to top 2021 records. The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) predicts total 2022 sales to drop 12.2 per cent from 2021, but prices will climb 8.9 per cent compared to last year.<\/p>\n
However, it\u2019s possible that sales levels could go higher over the next two months as purchasers try into a market with historically low mortgage rates, Skipworth explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn reality, even the most pessimistic forecasts for a Bank of Canada rate increases this year \u2013175 basis points \u2013 will not have much effect on what a buyer can afford,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
For example, the \u200b\u200baverage mortgage amount in Canada is about $371,500, which would equal a $1,485 payment with a variable-rate mortgage of 1.5 per cent and a 25-year amortization. An increase of 175 basis points would raise the same rate to 3.25 per cent, boosting the monthly payment to $1,807, $322 more per month.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the composite home price in Greater Vancouver is expected to rise 0.75 per cent \u2014 an average of $9,000 \u2014 a month during 2022.<\/p>\n
\u2018Cooling off\u2019 period could confuse spring market<\/h3>\n
In the monthly market report, Skipworth commented on the provincial government\u2019s proposal for a \u2018cooling off\u2019 period, which may result in fewer listings and delays within the market.<\/p>\n
A \u2018cooling off\u2019 period would be implemented to give buyers an opportunity to reconsider and withdraw their offers. Already, British Columbia real estate boards have voiced their opinion on the matter in a 57-page white paper published<\/a> by the British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) in late February.<\/p>\n\u201cThe effect would be chaos, with a cascading effect,\u201d said Skipworth. \u201cA seller would not know for a week or so whether the sale was actually going through. If it didn\u2019t, the next buyer would also have a mandatory grace period, and so on.”<\/p>\n
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<\/a>Photo:\u00a0Roman<\/a> \/ Adobe Stock<\/em><\/p>\n