Once again the Real Estate story remains with tight supply restricting sales. The Sales-to Active Listings ratio for October was a hair under 72% with 745 properties changing hands and just 1036 active listings at month-end. This is roughly 50% of the active listings from the previous year. This remains a great time to sell but a very challenging time to buy, with prices climbing and well priced homes seeing multiple offers, often without many subject conditions. The provincial government has tabled legislation that will allow for a cooling off period for buyers, similar to that in new construction. This is slated to come into effect in the spring and is meant to allow buyers time to reflect on their decision however, like previous attempts by the provincial government to cool the real estate market (speculation tax, foreign buyers tax) this is not likely to curb demand or supply issues. If anything it could have the opposite effect, allowing people to gamble without pause for consequences, and to make bigger bets.
The solution for the current housing crisis is, and remains, increased supply. Unfortunately the speed at which municipalities approve redevelopments which would increase that supply, and thus reduce pressure on pricing and demand, is a notoriously slow pace. Coupled with the prevailing NIMBY attitude people in many neighbourhoods have, (currently living on old forest land, or farm land that was densified to allow them to have a place to live…) means we are unlikely to see a relaxation on demand, or prices in the foreseeable future. The New Zealand federal government has moved to ban single family zoning in some of their most populous cities, taking the power away from the municipalities and the NIMBYs. Perhaps this is the solution we need?
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- Real Estate Market Update – Sept 2023
Victoria real estate market needs better mix of housing supply to help restore balance A total of 544 properties sold in the Victoria Real Estate Board region this August, 13.8 per cent more than the 478 properties sold in August 2022 and an 8.6 per cent decrease from July 2023. Sales of condominiums were up … » Learn More about Real Estate Market Update – Sept 2023 - Real Estate Market Update June 2023
Summer is here! “The month of May marks the highest number of sales we’ve seen since April of last year,” said Victoria Real Estate Board Chair Graden Sol. “While we haven’t seen the number of total sales we would expect in a spring market, the month of May marks the fourth consecutive month with sales … » Learn More about Real Estate Market Update June 2023 - Real Estate Market Update for Victoria – April 2023
Good news makes for a buoyant market. It looks like the turbulent and uncertain waters of inflation on our real estate market are behind us and it’s back to confidence. The news has been positive on many fronts since my last newsletter. The Bank of Canada held rates for the second time in a row … » Learn More about Real Estate Market Update for Victoria – April 2023
