Selection broadens and demand eases to kick off 2012 in the Greater Vancouver housing market
VANCOUVER, BC – Greater Vancouver home sellers were more active than buyers in January and overall home prices, according to the new MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI), continued to experience more stability and less fluctuation compared to the beginning of 2011.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver reached 1,577 on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in January 2012. This represents a 4.9 per cent decrease compared to the 1,658 sales recorded in December 2011, a decrease of 13.3 per cent compared to the 1,819 sales in January 2011 and an 18 per cent decline from the 1,923 home sales in January 2010.
January sales in Greater Vancouver were the second lowest January total in the region since 2002, though only 146 sales below the 10-year average.
“We’re seeing trends emerge in our market that favour buyers, such as increased selection and more stability in pricing compared to this time last year,” Rosario Setticasi, REBGV president said. “Last month’s activity tells us that competition amongst home buyers was reduced in January, which means that individuals looking to purchase a home had more time to do their homework, consult with their REALTOR®, and make a decision.”
New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 5,756 in January. This represents a 19.9 per cent increase compared to the 4,801 new listings reported in January 2011, and a 253.3 per cent increase compared to the 1,629 new listings reported in December 2011.
Last month’s new listing count was the highest January total in Greater Vancouver since 1995.
The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the Greater Vancouver MLS® is 12,544, a 12.5 per cent increase compared to December 2011 and an increase of 20.2 per cent compared to January 2011.
Assessment notices – a wake-up call for property owners
Property owners throughout BC received their 2012 assessment notice the first week of January from BC Assessment (BCA).
This notice is BC Assessment’s estimate of a property’s value as of July 1, 2011, and for new construction or substantially renovated homes, the physical condition as of October 31, 2011.
BCA is the government agency responsible for determining and reporting property value estimates for the 1,917,394 properties in its database, a 0.75% increase in the number of properties since 2011.
BC Assessment and a REALTOR® assessment. Why the difference?
BCA’s assessment and the market value determined by a REALTOR® may be different. Why?
Both BCA assessors and REALTORS® calculate market value by analyzing sales of comparable homes within a local market, and look at factors that affect value such as size of home, view, location – on a busy or quiet street, number of bedrooms, construction quality, floor level, and garage or parking stalls.
Where every lot and every home on a street are typically the same, both BCA’s value and a REALTOR’s® value will be similar during stable market conditions.
Differences occur in neighbourhoods where lots have been rezoned or are different shapes and sizes, where architecture and views are unique, and where owners have made changes that BCA hasn’t yet taken into account.
Differences also occur during market instability when prices rise or fall during the six-month period between July 1 and January 1 the following year.
Wake-up call – how to appeal an assessment
Since July 1, 2011 home owners may have seen prices stalling in some neighbourhoods and rising in others. Assessments may reflect these changes.
Sample Changes Year Over Year
Location
2012 Assessment Roll
2011 Assessment Roll
$ change
%change
Burnaby (Capital Hill, detached)
$665,000
$630,000
$35,000
5.6%
Coquitlam (Maillardville, detached)
$621,000
$547,000
$74,000
13.5%
Ladner (Detached)
$784,000
$759,000
$25,000
3.3%
Maple Ridge (Detached)
$385,000
$382,000
$3,000
0.8%
New Westminster (Sapperton, detached)
$523,000
$524,600
-$1,600
-0.3%
North Vancouver, District (Lynn Valley, detached)
$878,000
$844,000
$34,000
4.0%
Pemberton Village (Detached)
$499,000
$550,000
-$51,000
-9.3%
Port Coquitlam (Lincoln Park, detached)
$486,000
$494,000
-$8,000
-1.6%
Richmond (Steveston, detached)
$809,000
$738,300
$70,700
9.6%
Sunshine Coast (Gibsons, detached)
$431,000
$459,000
-$28,000
-6.1%
Vancouver (Downtown, 2-bed apartment)
$610,000
$542,000
$68,000
12.5%
Vancouver (East side, detached, 33’ lot)
$1,031,000
$816,000
$215,000
26.3%
Vancouver (West side, detached 50’ lot)
$1,645,000
$1,189,000
$456,000
38.4%
West Vancouver (Ambleside, detached)
$1,577,000
$1,229,000
$348,000
28.3%
Whistler (Village, 2-bed apartment)
$498,000
$583,000
-$85,000
-14.6%
The deadline to appeal is January 31, 2012
Property owners who disagree with their assessment should do their homework by visiting www.bcassessment.ca and then e-valueBC to compare their assessment with those of their neighbours. Each year, about 1.6% of all BC property owners appeal their assessment.
Property owners should first contact their local assessment office and talk to staff who can make adjustments if there is an obvious error, for example if BCA includes a new swimming pool, when, in fact, the pool is a shallow fish pond.
Area assessors’ phone numbers
Location
Phone number
Vancouver, the North Shore, Squamish, Whistler, Pemberton, Sunshine Coast
604-739-8588 Local 450
Richmond, South Delta
604-241-1364 Local 254
Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge
604-850-5900 Local 261
Anmore, Belcarra, Burnaby, Coquitlam, New Westminster, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody
604-294-6441 Local 256
Property owners who decide to appeal must file a written request by January 31, 2012. For information, visit www.bcassessment.ca and select Learn more about the Notice of Complaint (Appeal) process and the Property Assessment Review Panel.
What can an appeal mean for a property owner?
While BCA determines the assessed value of property tax for tax purposes, it’s the local taxing authorities – both provincial and local governments – which set tax rates each spring according budget requirements.
The formula for calculating taxes on property is:
Tax Rate x Assessed Value / 1,000
If the tax rate is 4.000 and the property assessment is $1 million, then the taxes payable are $4,000.
No notice
Property owners who haven’t received an assessment notice by mid-January should contact the area phone numbers listed above or request their tax notice online at www.bcassessment.ca. (See Receive your assessment notice online - right hand side).
If a property owner has concerns about their local taxes, they should contact their local government office. Taxes aren’t appealable.
New feature - save assessment data
Visit www.bcassessment.ca and select e-valueBC to view and compare the assessed value of any BC property. A new feature this year lets you download and save assessment data as a PDF or an Excel file.
REBGV reports increased housing demand in February
Demand for detached homes continues to be strong across Greater Vancouver, with particularly high sales volumes occurring in Richmond and Vancouver Westside.
For the past two months, the number of properties listed for sale and those sold on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Greater Vancouver outpaced the 10-year average in both categories. From a historical perspective, February’s 3,097 home sales outpace the 2,742 home-sale average recorded in the region over the last ten years.
“We saw an increase in demand across our region last month as more buyers entered the market in advance of the spring season,” said Jake Moldowan, president of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV). “The intensity of this activity varied between communities. Our statistics tell us that single detached homes in Richmond and the west side of Vancouver remain the most sought after properties in our marketplace.”
Between November 2010 and February 2011, the MLSLink® Housing Price Index (HPI) benchmark price of a detached home in Richmond increased $190,739 to $1,099,679; in Vancouver West, detached home prices increased $222,185 to $1,850,072. In comparison, detached home prices across the region increased $51,762 between November 2010 and February 2011 to $848,645.
“To effectively analyse real estate statistics for the purpose of buying or selling a home, it’s critical to focus on your neighbourhood of choice because, like we see today, conditions and prices can fluctuate significantly within the same city or municipality,” Moldowan said.
Looking across the region, the REBGV reports that residential property sales of detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver reached 3,097 on the MLS® in February 2011. This represents a 70.3 per cent increase compared to the 1,819 sales recorded in January 2011, an increase of 25.2 per cent compared to the 2,473 sales in February 2010 and a 109.3 per cent increase from the 1,480 home sales in February 2009.
New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 5,693 in February 2011. This represents a 23.6 per cent increase compared to February 2010 when 4,606 properties were listed, and an 18.6 per cent increase compared to January 2011 when 4,801 homes were added to the MLS® in Greater Vancouver.
“With a sizeable increase in the number of properties coming onto the market for sale, there’s a good selection out there for buyers to choose from,” Moldowan said.
At, 11,925, the total number of residential property listings on the MLS® increased 14.2 per cent in February compared to last month and increased 5 per cent from this time last year.
Sales of detached properties on the MLS® in February 2011 reached 1,402, an increase of 42.6 per cent from the 983 detached sales recorded in February 2010, and a 138.9 per cent increase from the 587 units sold in February 2009. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 6 per cent from February 2010 to $848,645.
Sales of apartment properties reached 1,206 in February 2011, a 12.3 per cent increase compared to the 1,074 sales in February 2010, and an increase of 85.5 per cent compared to the 650 sales in February 2009. The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 2.2 per cent from February 2010 to $399,397.
Attached property sales in February 2011 totalled 489, a 17.5 per cent increase compared to the 416 sales in February 2010, and a 101.2 per cent increase from the 243 attached properties sold in February 2009. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 2.3 per cent between February 2010 and 2011 to $507,118.
Slow start, strong finish for housing market in 2009
After beginning the year at near record low sales levels, buyers’ confidence in the Greater Vancouver housing market quickly returned, allowing for significant and sustained increases in the number of residential property sales for much of 2009.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that total unit sales of detached, attached and apartment properties in 2009 reached 35,669, a 44.8 per cent increase from the 24,626 unit sales recorded in 2008, but a 6.3 per cent decline from the 38,050 residential sales in 2007.
The number of homes listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Greater Vancouver declined 15.5 per cent in 2009 to 52,869 compared to the 62,561 properties listed in 2008.
“Low interest rates, an economy emerging from recession and continuing to improve, and consumer confidence led to the resurgence experienced in the Greater Vancouver housing market in 2009,” Scott Russell, REBGV president said. “Home sales neared or passed monthly records in Greater Vancouver throughout the latter half of 2009. In fact, last month’s home sales rank as the third highest selling December in the 90-year history of our organization.”
Residential property sales in Greater Vancouver totalled 2,515 in December 2009, an increase of 172.2 per cent from the 924 sales recorded in December 2008, and an 18.4 per cent decline compared to November 2009 when 3,083 home sales occurred.
The residential benchmark price, as calculated by the MLSLink Housing Price Index®, for Greater Vancouver increased 16.2 per cent to $562,463 between Decembers 2008 and 2009.
New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 2,153 in December 2009. This represents a 38.9 per cent increase compared to the 1,550 new units listed in December 2008 and a 41.1 per cent decline compared to November 2009 when 3,653 properties were listed.
“The number of homes listed for sale on our MLS® has been in decline in Greater Vancouver for eight of the last nine months, which results in upward pressure on home prices and less selection for buyers to choose from,” Russell said.
Total active listings in Greater Vancouver currently sit at 8,939, a decrease of 41 per cent from December 2008, and a decrease of 19 per cent from November 2009 (see graph on page two for more detail).
Sales of detached properties in December 2009 increased 159.2 per cent to 902, compared to 348 sales in December 2008. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 18.3 per cent to $766,816 compared to December 2008.
Sales of apartment properties in December 2009 increased 176.7 per cent to 1,154, compared to 417 sales in December 2008. The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 14.8 per cent since December 2008 to $382,573.
Attached property sales in December 2009 increased 188.7 per cent to 459, compared with the 159 sales in December 2008. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 12.9 per cent between Decembers 2008 and 2009 to $478,093.
The Big Question: How to Get Around During the Games?
Downtown Vancouver is open for business during the 2010 Winter Games. Of course, we will all be doing business differently – maybe changing hours of work, taking an extended lunch to enjoy the LiveCity sites, leaving our vehicle at home and taking public transit to work, and taking time from work to enjoy a sporting event or Cultural Olympiad performance. Adapting to temporary changes, in particular, around transportation, will be required by everyone.
FACT vs. FICTION
All downtown streets are closed to traffic.
FICTION: Yes, some major streets will be closed to vehicles, such as Granville, Beatty, Robson and Mainland to accommodate moving pedestrians around, but the vast majority of streets are accessible for all modes of transportation. Using transit, walking, biking or carpooling will help reduce traffic congestion. See the Olympic Road Network map.
Road closures will begin before the Games start.
FACT: Games operations, training and other Olympic traffic will begin throughout the city as early as January 2010, particularly around venues. The majority of transit, spectator, workforce, athlete and official movements will occur between February 4 and March 1, 2010. Street parking on select streets will be removed and Olympic Lanes implemented on February 4, 2010 and the Dunsmuir and Georgia viaducts will be closed to vehicular traffic starting February 5, 2010. See the timing of the rollout.
Athletes come to the Games to compete, not commute.
FACT: That’s why we all need to work together to reduce single occupancy vehicle use by at least 30%. Consider purchasing a six-week 2010 Games Transit Pass for your staff or working flex hours. Make your travel plans now using TravelSmart 2010.
The Stadium Skytrain station will be closed.
FICTION: The Stadium-Chinatown Skytrain station is a key recommended stop for spectators going to Canada Hockey Place (GM Place). Check out the new Vancouver 2010 Spectator Guide now online for all the details regarding how to access official venues, what you can bring in and when to arrive.
I can’t make or receive deliveries after 12pm.
FICTION: Goods movement and deliveries will be a key to the success of the Games. Changes to City by-laws allow for deliveries in downtown 24/7. To avoid congestion, deliveries are recommended from midnight to 6am or alternatively to noon at the latest. However, if you need to make or receive a delivery after noon, it can happen, but be prepared for delays. Read more about goods movement.
FICTION: Downtown is open for business – no pass required – just lots of patience and excitement. Tip: Invest in a good pair of walking shoes or boots. Walking will be the best – and fastest – way to get around downtown. Watch for a new wayfinding system throughout downtown to guide locals and visitors to transit stations, venues and attractions. It will be one of the lasting legacies of the Games.
Public transit capacity will be increased during the Games.
FACT: Skytrain will run an extra hour until 2:15am daily; additional night buses will be added and some will run 24/7; a third Seabus will be added along with 180 new buses, 48 new Skytrain cars, extended service for the West Coast Express, 30 additional HandyDART vehicles, and, of course, the new Canada Line is already up and running. Cool souvenir six-week TransLink passes go on sale in December to encourage more riders before, during and after the Games. To make your transit plans, visit: TravelSmart 2010.
Added transit capacity will mean more room on buses and Skytrains.
FICTION: While there will definitely be more capacity added to the system during the Games, buses and Skytrains are already crowded. The solution? Locals are encouraged to use public transit in off-peak hours to ensure the best travel experience. Avoid travelling between 7-9am and 2-7pm. Consider changing your company's office hours: come in early and leave early, or come in late and stay late to check out all the fun stuff to do downtown like LiveCity Downtown.
There won't be any parking downtown.
FICTION: On-street parking on streets such as Howe and Burrard that have designated 'Olympic Lanes' will be removed beginning Feb. 4. The current bus lane will become the 'Olympic lane' for Olympic vehicles and TransLink only. All other lanes on those streets remain open to regular traffic. There are three times as many off-street or parkade parking stalls available compared to on-street parking and they will remain accessible during the Games. So, drive if you must, but please carpool to help reduce single occupany vehicles on the road by 30%.
Sign up today to the DVBIA 2010 Winter Games Business Readiness email list to receive weekly tips before and daily Hotsheets during the Games.
week of January from BC Assessment (BCA).
