February brought a surge of new listings to Metro Vancouver’s housing market, alleviating concerns of dwindling inventory.
Greater Vancouver Realtors reported a 13.5 per cent increase in residential sales compared to last year, with 2,070 properties changing hands. This uptick follows a 31 per cent rise in new listings.
More housing options for buyers this spring and summer
“While the pace of home sales started the year off briskly, the pace of newly listed properties in January was slower by comparison. A continuation of this pattern in February would have been concerning, as it could quickly tilt the market towards overheated conditions,” Andrew Lis, GVR’s director of economics and data analytics explains.
“With new listings up about 31 per cent year-over-year in February, this will relieve some of the pressure that was building in January and offer buyers more choice as we enter the spring and summer markets.”
More inventory, more listings, still a seller’s market
Across all property types, 4,560 homes were listed in February, marking a notable increase from the previous year. The total number of properties listed for sale stands at 9,634, a 16.3 per cent rise from February 2023. Despite this influx of listings, the sales-to-active listings ratio remains at 22.4 per cent, indicating a competitive market favoring sellers.
“Even with the increase in new listings, however, standing inventory levels were not high enough relative to the pace of sales to mitigate price acceleration in February, with most segments of the market moving into sellers’ territory,” Lis notes.
Prices below spring 2022 peak but still rising
He continues: “This competitive dynamic has led to modest price growth across all market segments this month, but it’s noteworthy that benchmark prices remain below the peak observed in the spring of 2022, before the market internalized the full effect of the Bank of Canada’s tightening cycle.”
While the increase in new listings has provided some relief, prices continue to experience modest growth. The benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver now sits at $1,183,300, reflecting a 4.5 per cent rise from last year. Detached homes saw a benchmark price of $1,972,400, while apartments and attached homes reached $770,700 and $1,094,700, respectively.
Review February’s full report here.
