Repeated warnings of an overheated market failed to deter home buyers in Canada’s largest cities in 2013, with the number of Toronto home sales up two per cent over the previous year, Vancouver sales were up 14 per cent and Calgary sales rose 11 per cent.
PICKUP IN VANCOUVER SALES
For Metro Vancouver, total sales of detached, attached and apartment properties in 2013 reached 28,524, a 14 per cent increase from the 25,032 sales recorded in 2012.
But the number of residential properties listed for sale on the MLS declined 6.2 per cent in 2013 to 54,742, part of a trend in major cities as baby boomers hold onto their properties.
The average house price in the Greater Vancouver area was $603,400.
The price of a detached single family home rose 2.5 per cent to $927,000, while condo prices were up 1.8 per cent for the year to $367,800.
“It was a year of stability for the Greater Vancouver housing market,” said Sandra Wyant, Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver president. “Balanced conditions allowed home prices in the region to remain steady, with just a modest increase over the last 12 months.”
Source: cbc.ca