RE/MAX Lower Mainland Offices Voted Consumers’ Choice Award

Kelowna, BC (February 24, 2011) – The 35 Lower Mainland RE/MAX offices have been recognized with the 2010 Consumers’ Choice Award®, an honor presented to those companies that have been voted as the best in their field by consumers. Independent surveys show that the offices, and agents who work from those offices, excelled overall in customer satisfaction and have earned the confidence, trust and loyalty of their community.

For more information on the award please click HERE.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that new listings for detached, attached and
apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 7,004 in March 2010. This represents a 60 per cent increase
compared to March 2009 when 4,385 new units were listed, and a 52.1 per cent increase compared to February
2010 when 4,606 properties were listed on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®).

At 13,538, the total number of property listings on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS®) increased 19 per cent
in March compared to last month, but remains 7.6 per cent below this time last year.
“The total number of homes listed for sale on our MLS® is at its highest level in 10 months, which translates
into more options and variety for those looking to buy during the traditionally busy spring period,” Jake Moldowan,
REBGV president said.

Please click HERE for the full report.

RBC hikes mortgage rates again – Globe and Mail

The move, which will result in a 0.25 percentage point increase in the cost of a number of fixed-rate mortgage products that the bank offers, is likely to spark another round of rate hikes among the country’s mortgage lenders.

RBC kicked off one series of hikes a little more than two weeks ago, and most experts said that was the start of a steady rise in mortgage rates.

At that time the cost of a five-year closed rate mortgage from RBC and many of its competitors rose by 0.60 percentage points to 5.85 per cent.

Please click HERE for the full article.

Westside Vancouver Attached Report February 2 – February 9 :

The Westside neighbourhoods posted strong sales and listing numbers for the fourth consecutive week as we move towards the Olympics with firm market share on both the sales and supply side. Vancouver West saw 253 new attached listings (up from 213 in the previous week) as a whole with the Westside neighbourhoods contributing 108 new attached listings or roughly 43% of all new supply. The University, Kitsilano, and Fairview areas demonstrated strong supply numbers with 15, 27, and 18 new attached listings respectively.

Please click HERE for the full article.

Westside Vancouver Detached Report February 2- February 9 :

Confirmed detached sales numbers improved marginally for the second consecutive week, as we witnessed 39 confirmed detached sales this period (up slightly from 37 in the previos week). Both Dunbar and Point Grey posted weaker numbers this week, however; as both areas may be suffering a little bit from price increases combined with a few consecutive weeks of improving supply conditions. Kitsilano and South Granville both posted a sales jump and proceeded to grab a greater portion of the Westside sales share.

Please click HERE for the full article.

VANCOUVER, B.C. – May 4, 2009 – With more buyers and fewer homes for sale in recent months, the Greater Vancouver housing market has entered a more moderate and balanced state.

For the sixth consecutive month, new listings for detached, attached and apartment properties declined in Greater Vancouver, down 33.7 per cent to 4,649 in April 2009 compared to April 2008, when 7,010 new units were listed. The total number of property listings on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®), while slightly down compared to last month, remains unchanged compared to the same period in 2008.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver totalled 2,963 in April 2009, a decline of eight per cent from the 3,218 sales recorded in April 2008, and an increase of 31 per cent compared to last month.

“We’re seeing greater balance in the housing market, as evidenced by a strong sales to active listings ratio of over 19 per cent,” Scott Russell, REBGV president said. “The result is a relatively stable market in which homes are being realistically priced.

“The bridge between buyer demand and housing supply is continuing to narrow, which, as we see, helps bring stability to home prices,” he said. “The trends in our housing market over the last couple of months offer a much more comfortable, historically normal set of conditions.”

Sales of detached properties declined eight per cent to 1,190 from the 1,293 detached sales recorded during the same period in 2008. The benchmark price, as calculated by the MLSLink Housing Price Index®, for detached properties declined 12.2 per cent from April 2008 to $675,268.

Sales of apartment properties in April 2009 declined 10.5 per cent to 1,179, compared to 1,317 sales in April 2008. The benchmark price of an apartment property declined 12.6 per cent from April 2008 to $340,203.

Attached property sales in April 2009 are down 2.3 per cent to 594, compared with the 608 sales in April 2008. The benchmark price of an attached unit decreased 9.7 per cent between April 2008 and 2009 to $431,759.

Bright spots in Greater Vancouver in April 2009 compared to April 2008:

Detached:

Vancouver West                                 up 59.5 per cent (193 units sold from 121)

Attached:

Port Coquitlam                                    up 69.6 per cent (39 units sold from 23)

Richmond                                           up 17.9 per cent (132 units sold from 112)

Vancouver West                                 up 46.3 per cent (98 units sold from 67)

Apartments:

North Vancouver                                up 29.2 per cent (84 units sold from 65)

This past week there were 58 new detached active listings in the Vancouver West Region. Please note if your neighbourhood is not included in the weekly list it indicates there were zero (0) new listings in your area for that period.

The 58 new detached active listings on the Westside were distributed as follows:

Arbutus (AR) : 5
Cambie (CA) : 6
Dunbar (DU) : 5
Kerrisdale (KE) : 12
Kitsilano (KT) : 2
MacKenzie Heights (MH) : 7
Marpole (MR) : 1
Oakridge (OA) : 1
Point Grey (PG) : 2
Quilchena (QU) : 1
Shaughnessy (SH) : 5
South Cambie (SC) : 2
South Granville (SG) : 6
Southlands (SL) : 2
University (UL) : 2

58 total detached listings on the Westside from February 9th – February 16th.

This past week there were 34 detached sold listings in the Vancouver West Region. Please note if your neighbourhood is not included in the weekly list it indicates there were zero (0) sales in your area for that period.

The 34 detached sold listings on the Westside were distributed as follows:

Arbutus (AR) : 2
Cambie (CA) : 5
Dunbar (DU) : 6
Kerrisdale (KE) : 2
Kitsilano (KT) : 4
Point Grey (PG) : 4
Quilchena (QU) : 5
South Granville (SG) : 1
Shaughnessy (SH) : 2
Southlands (SL) : 1
S.W. Marine (SW) : 1
University (UL) : 1

34 total detached sales on the Westside from February 9th-February 16th.

If you are interested in more detailed breakdowns of sales versus listing ratios for your area please do not hesitate to get in touch with us! And remember to visit http://www.vancouverrealtyonline.com for even more real estate updates and info!

Westside resident?  Check out http://www.kitsilanoshomes.com for information, and news specific to your neighbourhood!