Happy New Year! it's been another solid year for BC real estate. Most areas of the province saw a strong, stable market as both prices and sales look to surpass those of 2012, albeit only slightly. In fact, 2013 was pretty much the polar opposite of 2012 as the year started slowly before finishing strong. For most markets, the years' numbers were actually behind those of 2012 before a strong August pushed the year-to-date figures ahead of last years' pace.
Interestingly, many media stories in the past few weeks have centered around the notion that the real estate market is extremely strong (See Globe & Mail story here) as "sales were up 19.2 per cent in the Toronto area last month, 37.8 per cent in Vancouver, 18 per cent in Calgary, 37.27 per cent in Victoria, 15.6 per cent in Edmonton, and two per cent in Ottawa." What these articles fail to mention, however, is that these numbers are being compared to last years' numbers, which were very weak in the latter half.
Regardless, our forecast is for another strong, stable year in the real estate market for 2014. That's good news for both buyers and sellers. The value of sellers' homes is expected to maintain their value while buyers will have time to find an appropriate property without the pressure of multiple offers. Canada's housing sector is once again a shining example of a responsible, stable, boring market.
