The Metro Vancouver housing market saw steady home sale and listing activity in May, a shift back from the record-breaking activity seen in the earlier spring months.
But things are definitely still red hot in New Westminster, with barely any drop off in the past month.
New Westminster saw 192 total residential housing sales in May, down just five sales from a record-breaking April. These are spread between apartments, townhouses and single-detached houses. The 192 units sold crushed the May 2020 numbers, which saw just 72 units sold. Average price for a single-detached house in New West in May was $1.3 million, while next door in Burnaby it’s $1.8 million.
The REBGV reports that residential home sales in the region totalled 4,268 in May 2021, a 187.4 per cent increase from the 1,485 sales recorded in May 2020, and a 13 per cent decrease from the 4,908 homes sold in April 2021.
Last month’s sales were 27.7 per cent above the 10-year May sales average.
There were 7,125 detached, attached and apartment properties newly listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) in Metro Vancouver in May 2021. This represents a 93.4 per cent increase compared to the 3,684 homes listed in May 2020 and a 10.2 per cent decrease compared to April 2021 when 7,938 homes were listed.
The total number of homes currently listed for sale on the MLS system in Metro Vancouver is 10,970, a 10.5 per cent increase compared to May 2020 (9,927) and a 7.1 per cent increase compared to April 2021 (10,245).
For all property types, the sales-to-active listings ratio for May 2021 is 38.9 per cent. By property type, the ratio is 29.8 per cent for detached homes, 53.8 per cent for townhomes, and 43.5 per cent for apartments.
Generally, analysts say downward pressure on home prices occurs when the ratio dips below 12 per cent for a sustained period, while home prices often experience upward pressure when it surpasses 20 per cent over several months.
The MLS Home Price Index1 composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver is currently $1,172,800. This represents a 14 per cent increase over May 2020 and a 1.5 per cent increase compared to April 2021.
Sales of detached homes in May 2021 reached 1,430, a 166 per cent increase from the 537 detached sales recorded in May 2020. The benchmark price for a detached home is $1,800,600. This represents a 22.8 per cent increase from May 2020 and a 1.7 per cent increase compared to April 2021.
Sales of apartment homes reached 2,049 in May 2021, a 213 per cent increase compared to the 653 sales in May 2020. The benchmark price of an apartment home is $737,100. This represents a 7.9 per cent increase from May 2020 and a 1.2 per cent increase compared to April 2021.
Attached home sales in May 2021 totalled 800, a 168 per cent increase compared to the 298 sales in May 2020. The benchmark price of an attached home is $936,300. This represents a 16.3 per cent increase from May 2020 and a 1.8 per cent increase compared to April 2021.
