VANCOUVER ISLAND – The latest Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) December 2024 statistics report showed an increase in all property type sales from 2023. Unit sales in 2024 were 7,489, 7,297 in 2023 and 7,810 in 2022.
There was a total of 443 until sales in December and 2,883 active listings north of the Malahat. Active listings of single-family homes were 829 in December, up from the 796 posted one year ago. VIREB’s inventory of condo apartments was 271 last month, up from 257 in December 2023. There were 195 row/townhouses for sale last month compared to 244 the previous year.
As far as single-family homes, excluding acreage and waterfront, 227 homes sold in December which was an increase of 52 per cent from December of 2023 but a 15 per cent decrease from November 2024. Condo apartments sales were 44, a 16 per cent increase year over year but a 29 per cent decrease from the previous month. There were 58 townhouse units changing hands in December, and increase of 49 per cent from December 2023 and down 24 per cent from November.
“Midway through 2024, VIREB’s housing market was fairly lacklustre, but it picked up steam later in the year,” says Jason Yochim, VIREB CEO. “Our market remains balanced, indicated by an absorption rate of 15 per cent, which benefits buyers and sellers.”
The board-wide benchmark price (MLS® Home Price Index) of a single-family home was $776,500 in December 2024, up three per cent from one year ago. In the apartment category, the benchmark price was $395,700 last month, down one per cent from the previous December. The benchmark price of a townhouse in December was $547,000, up two per cent from one year ago.
Across the Island, Campbell River’s single family home benchmark price was $693,400 in December, up five per cent over the previous year whereas Comox Valley’s benchmark price was $834,500, an increase of three per cent from 2024.
Parksville-Qualicum area saw its benchmark price increase by four per cent to $886,300, Nanaimo’s rose by four per cent to $819,000 and Cowichan Valley was down one per cent year over year at 762,800.
The cost of a benchmark single-family home in Port Alberni was $511,000, up one per cent from the previous year. For the North Island, the benchmark price of a single-family home rose by six per cent to $448,400.
The VIREB report stated: “Looking ahead to 2025, the British Columbia Real Estate Association projects sales in the VIREB area to be around 7,900 this year. However, there is a great deal of uncertainty in the air due to tariff threats made by the incoming American administration. While British Columbia is less dependent on the United States than the rest of Canada (exports of 50 per cent compared to 75 per cent), a 25 per cent tariff would significantly impact the Canadian economy.”
Business Examiner Staff