As 2021 draws to a close, Vancouver shows no signs of slowing down

The region's annual home sales total is expected to reach a near-all-time record

As 2021 draws to a close, Vancouver shows no signs of slowing down

In Metro Vancouver, home buyer demand remained much higher than long-term averages while supply continued dropping in November, according to the region’s housing industry association.

A total of 3,428 home sales took place in Vancouver last month, which was 33.6% higher than the 10-year sales average for November despite a 1.9% decrease from October and an 11.9% increase from November 2020, said the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.

“We expect home sale totals to end the year at or near an all-time record in our region. We’ve had elevated home sale activity throughout 2021 despite persistently low levels of homes available for sale,” said Keith Stewart, economist at the REBGV.

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New listings were down by 2.1% monthly and down by 2.6% annually for a total of 3,964 homes newly listed for sale on the region’s Multiple Listing Service, the REBGV said. Active listings were also down by 11.1% monthly and down by 35.7% annually, amounting to 7,144 homes currently listed for sale across the region.

The benchmark price across all housing asset classes in Metro Vancouver saw a 16% annual gain to reach $1.211 million.

“The imbalance between supply and demand, coupled with some buyers wanting to use rate holds on lower rate fixed-term mortgages, is keeping upward pressure on home prices in this traditionally quieter time of year for the market,” Stewart said.