December real estate sales were brisk and quick, capping off a very busy 2017!
We saw 462 properties sold in the Victoria Real Estate Board region, only 1.9 percent fewer than December in the record-breaking year of 2016.
Several factors were working together to increase the number of sales in December.
A continuing low inventory of properties for sale: Buyers faced competitive situations in high demand areas, and multiple offers were still common. We had only 1,384 active listing in December - the lowest level of inventory in the area for this month since the Real Estate Board started tracking stats in 1996.
As well, the changes to mortgage qualifying rules, especially the mortgage stress test which was to come into effect on January 1st, 2018 (and did) pushed people into the market earlier than they originally planned.
The Multiple Listing Service® Home Price Index benchmark value for a single-family home in the Victoria Core in December 2017 was $823,800 – an increase of 9.3 percent over December 2016. Benchmark values for townhouses came in at $572,858, and benchmark values for condominiums were $449,460. These types of homes saw an increase over last year of 8.0 percent and 16.3 percent respectively.
What can we look forward to in 2018? No one can ever say for certain, but I'll quote Victoria Real Estate Board President Ara Balabanian.
"Moving forward, we expect to see more inventory come into the market, which will continue to move us toward a more balanced state," says Balabanian. "We also expect housing prices to remain stable, without the increases we tracked in 2016, and anticipate steady slow growth.”
A grand total of 8,944 properties sold over the course of 2017, 15.8 percent fewer than the record-breaking 10,622 that sold in 2016. 2017 sales came in at 21.7 percent over the ten-year average of 7,349 properties sold.
I trust you’ll find this information interesting. As always, I’m here to take care of your real estate needs.
