The Victoria Real Estate Board has released their latest statistics for the month of October. The following is an excerpt from their press release.
A total of 619 properties sold in the Victoria Real Estate Board region this October, 3.5 per cent more than the 598 properties sold in October 2018 and a 0.5 per cent increase from September 2019. Sales of condominiums were down 1.1 per cent from October 2018 with 178 units sold. Sales of single family homes increased 10 per cent from October 2018 with 318 sold.
“This month’s overall numbers are very similar to the numbers we saw last year," says Victoria Real Estate Board President Cheryl Woolley. “It’s interesting that last month we saw a large uptick in condo sales, but this month is fairly flat when compared to last year. This shows that we are not yet seeing a trend in property types.”
There were 2,643 active listings for sale on the Victoria Real Estate Board Multiple Listing Service® at the end of October 2019, a decrease of 6.4 per cent compared to the month of September, but a 5.3 per cent increase from the 2,510 active listings for sale at the end of October 2018.
“There has been a slight increase in our inventory from October last year,” adds Woolley. “The current inventory is likely not enough for home buyers to feel they have a lot more to choose from - which in turn puts pressure on pricing for homes in desirable locations and price points. It’s not uncommon to see multiple offers in many of our market segments. Your local Realtor will be able to help you understand the intricacies of our current market and what you can expect at the time you decide to buy or sell a home."
The Multiple Listing Service® Home Price Index benchmark value for a single family home in the Victoria Core in October 2018 was $878,900. The benchmark value for the same home in October 2019 decreased by 2.4 per cent to $857,700, slightly more than September’s value of $846,500. The MLS® HPI benchmark value for a condominium in the Victoria Core area in October 2018 was $503,200, while the benchmark value for the same condominium in October 2019 increased by 1.7 per cent to $511,600, the same as September’s value.
This chart tracks the ratio of total residential sales over total active residential listings at month-end for each of the last 25 months. The active listing count and the sales count can be viewed as indicators of housing supply and demand respectively. Observing the ratio between them can thus help indicate a "buyers' market", where there is downward pressure on prices, and a "sellers' market", where there is upward pressure on prices.
below 10%, there is downward pressure on prices (buyers' market)
above 25%, there is upward pressure on prices (sellers' market)
in the 15-20% range, there is little pressure on prices either way