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October housing sales consistent with record highs

Vancouver, B.C. November 5, 2007 - The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that total residential sales reached 3028 units in October 2007, an increase of 11.2 per cent compared to 2,722 sales in October 2006, and a 2.3 per cent decrease compared to the 3,099 units sold in October 2005.

Property listings remain relatively unchanged compared to last year's levels, with 4,819 active listings at October month-end, compared to 4,862 last year.

"This is only the fourth time in 25 years that sales have surpassed the 3,000 mark in the month of October," says REBGV president Brian Naphtali. "What we're seeing is a buoyant market fueled by strong demand from both first-time and repeat buyers.

"The economy is healthy," Naphtali says. "There's virtually no unemployment. Interest rates are steady. These are all factors affecting the continued strong demand for housing."

According to Multiple Listings Service® (MLS®) data, sales of apartment properties increased by 17.4 per cent to 1,368 sales in October 2007 compared to 1,165 sales in October 2006. The benchmark price of an apartment property in Greater Vancouver, calculated by the MLSLink® Housing Price Index, is $371,418, up 11.4 per cent from one year ago.

Sales of attached properties increased by 11.7 per cent in October 2007 to 527 sales, compared to 472 sales in October 2006. The benchmark price of an attached unit is $454,645, up 10.8 per cent from a year ago.

Sales of detached properties increased by 4.4 per cent in October 2007 to 1,133 sales, compared to 1,085 sales in October 2006. The benchmark price of a detached unit is $730,022, up 12.2 per cent from last year.

Bright spots in Greater Vancouver in October 2007 compared to October 2006:

Detached:
Burnaby	up 14.5% (95 units sold, up from 83)
Coquitlam	up 31.9% (124 units sold, up from 94)
Richmond	up 20.4% (136 units sold, up from 113)
Vancouver East	up 11.6% (163 units sold, up from 146)
Vancouver West	up 11.4% (156 units sold, up from 140)

Attached:
Burnaby	up 24.1% (67 units sold, up from 54)
Port Coquitlam	up 62.5% (26 units sold, up from 16)
Whistler/Pemberton	up 100% (22 units sold, up from 11)

Apartments:
Burnaby	up 25.4% (168 units sold, up from 134)
Coquitlam	up 20.3% (77 units sold, up from 64)
Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows	up 80% (36 units sold, up from 20)
New Westminster	up 21.1% (92 units sold, up from 76)
Richmond	up 47.1% (175 units sold, up from 119)
Vancouver West	up 19.8% (479 units sold, up from 400)

The Real Estate industry is a key economic driver in British Columbia. In 2006, dollar volume sales of homes in Greater Vancouver set a new record at more than $18.2 billion. Based on this figure, Greater Vancouver home sales in 2006 generated over $922 million in spin-offs. The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver is an association representing more than 9,500 REALTORS® The Real Estate Board provides a variety of membership services, including the Multiple Listing Service®. For more information on real estate, statistics, and buying or selling a home, contact a local REALTOR® or visit www.realtylink.org.

^*In August 2004, the Greater Vancouver and Fraser Valley boards upgraded our existing MLS systems to a common system called MLSLink. MLSLink® HPI is the latest version of the Board’s Housing Price Index (HPI) and is designed to accommodate the MLS upgrade and improve the legacy HPI product. For more information on real estate, statistics, and buying or selling a home, 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

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