realtylinkonline

Friday, November 2nd, 2001

October home sales highest since 1996

VANCOUVER, B.C. - The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that last month had the highest number of sales for the month of October since 1996.

Sales of detached, attached and apartment properties increased 35 per cent to 2,379 in October 2001 compared to 1,765 during the same period in 2000.

According to Multiple Listing Service data, sales of apartment properties increased 46 per cent with a total of 781 units sold in October 2001 in comparison to 536 sales in October 2000. The apartment benchmark price in Greater Vancouver, calculated by the Board’s Housing Price Index, is $161,040 up just over two per cent from one year ago.

“A 40-year low in the Bank of Canada rate, followed by competitive mortgage rates, make the buying process more afford-able which keeps a good balance between buyer and seller demand. Today’s mortgage rates stand to save consumers thou-sands of dollars a year in interest when buying a big-ticket item like a home,” said REBGV President Don Pearce

Sales of attached properties increased 40 per cent to 374 in October 2001 from 268 in October 2000. The attached benchmark price is $225,380 an increase of over five per cent in comparison to last year.

Year over year, sales of detached properties increased 27 per cent in October, with 1,224 sales compared with 961 sales in October 2000. The detached properties benchmark price is $360,820 an increase of almost seven per cent over the same period last year.

A number of bright spots were noted in Greater Vancouver communities in October 2001 compared to October 2000:

Detached:
Burnaby	up 41% (111 units sold from 79)
Maple Ridge / Pitt Meadows	up 48% (135 units sold from 91)
North Vancouver	up 27% (100 units sold from 79)
Port Coquitlam	up 46% (60 units sold from 41)
Port Moody / Belcarra	up 36% (30 units sold from 22)
Richmond	up 40% (136 units sold from 97)
Squamish	up 67% (20 units sold from 12)
Sunshine Coast	up 108% (52 units sold from 25)
Vancouver East	up 32% (229 units sold from 174)
Vancouver West	up 30 % (134 units sold from 103)
Attached:
Coquitlam	up 65% (28 units sold from 17)
North Vancouver	up 36% (34 units sold from 25)
Port Moody / Belcarra	up 217% (19 units sold from 6)
Richmond	up 26% (67 units sold from 53)
Vancouver East	up 144% (39 units sold from 16)
Vancouver West	up 70% (56 units sold from 33)
Apartments:
Burnaby	up 38% (101 units sold from 73)
Coquitlam	up 65 % (51 units sold from 31)
Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows	up 46% (19 units sold from 13)
New Westminster	up 30% (39 units sold 30)
North Vancouver	up 71% (65 units sold from 38)
Port Coquitlam	up 144% (22 units sold from 9)
Richmond	up 56% (95 units sold from 61)
Vancouver East	up 81% (58 units sold from 32)
Vancouver West	up 30 % (292 units sold from 224)
West Vancouver/Howe Sound	up 220% (16 units sold from 5)

The REBGV is an association representing some 7,000 Greater Vancouver REALTORS®. It provides a variety of membership services, including the Multiple Listing Service, to effectively serve the real estate needs of the community. The REBGV cooperates with other industry affiliates by addressing issues that may impact the real estate consumer. For the most comprehensive source of real estate, statistics, home buying and selling information, visit www.realtylink.org.

For more information please contact:

Eileen Day, Manager of Communications
Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver
Phone: (604) 730-3028 Fax: (604) 730-3102
E-mail: eday@rebgv.org

now viewing: NEWS RELEASE