B.C. sets new annual record for number of homes sold

The annual number of homes sold in British Columbia hit a new high in 2021, even with one month of data still to come in.

According to the B.C. Real Estate Association, the yearly salestotal through to the end of November was 117,965 units, surpassing the previous record of 112,425 units sold in 2016.

A high volume of sales in the first half of the year helped push the number up, according to the BCREA's chief economist.

"We were setting records basically in every market of the province in terms of sales all through the spring. It settled down through the summer, and now we're starting to see some momentum in sales again," saidBrendon Ogmundson.

The record number of sales may seem to contradict reports of record low inventory, but Ogmundson says both can be true at the same time.

"What's happening right now is that new listings activity is like a just-in-time inventory. Everything that comes onto the market is getting bought. We have OK levels of new supply, but we're not getting enough to rebuild total inventory."

According to the data, the average price of a home in B.C. is now just shy of a million dollars at $993,922, up 22.1 per cent from the average of $814,310 from November 2020.

Ogmundson said pandemic-induced relocation demand is a bigfactor in the price surge, especially when it comes to people moving out of Vancouver.

"Vancouver incomes that were relocating to other areas of the province that were already under-supplied drove up prices," said Ogmundson.

"People looking for space and for single detached homes especially meant there is a lot more of that type of product selling around the province. And it is a little more expensive, so it tends to skew the average a bit."

Average home prices in Chilliwack ($794,6050,) the Fraser Valley ($1,107,374) and Victoria ($987,970) continue to close the gap on the average Greater Vancouver home ($1,241,774.)

Currently, there are just over 16,000 homes listed for sale in all of B.C. Ogmundson said, normally, the Vancouver area alone has that many listings.

Victoria and the Capital Region District is the tightest market in the province with just 672 active listings for a population of 400,000.Ogmundsaon said part of the issue there is that people who retire to the Victoria area, seldom move away.

"It's really incredible how low inventory is there," he said. "If you are thinking about retiring or even just relocating to Victoria from somewhere else in B.C., you're bringing demand, you're not bringing any supply."