By Kevin Gillies
Contributor
A decline in sales listings continues to put upward pressure on detached housing prices in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows.
The number of detached homes listed for sale last month dropped considerably over the previous year and matches a trend that is occurring across the Lower Mainland.
According to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV), Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows combined for a total of 175 detached-home listings in September.
That represents a 15 per cent drop in listings, when compared to September 2014’s 206 detached listings.
“The number of homes listed for sale hasn’t been keeping up with the demand,” Darcy McLeod, REBGV president said. “It’s this dynamic that’s placing upward pressure on home prices, particularly in the detached home market.”
McLeod said market conditions continue to favour home sellers across Metro Vancouver’s housing market.
The number of Ridge-Meadows attached homes (townhomes) listings actually increased in September when compared to September last year, going from 60 to 89.
Apartment listings in the Ridge-Meadows communities remained relatively static over the same two periods — 47 in September 2014 and 48 in September 2015.
In Maple Ridge, during September, the REBGV benchmark price for a detached home was $524,800. That represents a 9.7 per cent increase over a year ago.
In Pitt Meadows, during September, the REBGV benchmark price for a detached home was $579,300 — representing an 11.5 per cent increase over a year ago.
“Residential home sales have been trending at 25 to 30 per cent above the 10-year sales average for most of the year,” McLeod said.
Despite the increase in listings for Ridge-Meadows townhouses, the REBGV benchmark prices continued to rise.
The REBGV benchmark price for a Maple Ridge townhouse in September was $296,400 — up 9.2 per cent over the price a year ago.
Similarly, the REBGV benchmark price for a Pitt Meadows townhouse in September was 360,800 — up 9.5 per cent over the price a year ago.
Similar numbers for real estate listings across the Greater Vancouver area are being reported by the real estate agency.
New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totaled 4,846 in September. This represents a 7.9 per cent decline compared to the 5,259 new listings reported in September 2014.
The total number of properties listed for sale on the real estate board’s MLS is 10,805 — a 27 per cent decline compared to September 2014 and a 0.8 per cent decline compared to August 2015.
The REBGV reports that last month’s sales were 32.9 per cent above the 10-year sales average for the month.
In fact, the agency says residential property sales in Metro Vancouver reached 3,345 on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) in September 2015.
This represents a 14.5 per cent increase compared to the 2,922 sales recorded in September 2014, and a 0.5 per cent decrease compared to the 3,362 sales in August 2015.
“At no point this year has the number of homes listed for sale exceeded 14,000, which is the first time this has occurred in the region since 2007,” McLeod said.
The MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver is currently $722,300. This represents a 13.7 per cent increase compared to September 2014.
Other areas covered by the REBGV include: Whistler, Sunshine Coast, Squamish, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Richmond, Port Moody, Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam, New Westminster and South Delta.
In 2014, 33,116 homes changed ownership in the REBGV area, with a total dollar value of residential sales (transacted through Metro Vancouver’s MLS system) totaled $27.3 billion. The REBGV is an association representing nearly 12,000 real estate agents and their companies.