BRITISH COLUMBIA – The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that 5,579 residential unit sales were recorded in Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) systems in September 2024, up a little under 1 per cent from September 2023. The average MLS® residential price in BC in September 2024 was down 2.8 per cent at $942,969 compared to an average price of $969,907 in September 2023.
The total sales dollar volume was $5.3 billion, a 2.1 per cent decline from the same time the previous year. BC MLS® unit sales were 25 per cent lower than the ten-year average for September.
“Thus far, falling mortgage rates have not had the expected impact on home sales,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “That said, there has been interesting regional variation with markets on Vancouver Island and in the North recording more historically normal activity while the Lower Mainland and parts of the Interior lag behind.”
Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume is down 3.2 per cent to $56 billion, compared with the same period in 2023. Residential unit sales are down by 4.1 per cent year-over-year at 57,069 units, while the average MLS® residential price is up 1 per cent to $981,393.
Canadian housing starts rose 5 per cent to 223,808 units in September at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). Starts were down 16 per cent from the same month last year. Single-detached housing starts were 5 per cent higher from last month at 54,105 units, while multi-family and other starts also rose 5 per cent to 169,707 units (SAAR).
In British Columbia, starts rose 27 per cent from last month to 43,999 units SAAR in all areas of the province. In areas of the province with 10,000 or more residents, single-detached starts fell 7 per cent to 4,333 units while multi-family starts rose 35 per cent to 35,255 units compared to August. Starts in the province were 12 per cent above the levels from September 2023. Compared with last year, year-to-date starts are up by 72 per cent in Kelowna and 68 per cent in Abbotsford. Year-to-date starts are down by 19 per cent in Vancouver, 19 per cent in Nanaimo, and by 3 per cent in Victoria.
Source: bcrea.bc.ca
