It has been a topsy-turvy real estate scene in South Delta where the latest property assessments aren’t not lining up with the market, particularly when it comes to single-family detached houses.
According to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, after seeing record sales and prices during the pandemic, Metro Vancouver’s housing market experienced a year of caution in 2022 due to rising borrowing costs fueled by the Bank of Canada’s ongoing battle with inflation.
The REBGV reports that residential home sales in the region in 2022 saw a 34.3 per cent decrease from the sales recorded in 2021, and a 6.6 per cent decrease from the homes sold in 2020.
Last year’s sales total was also 13.4 per cent below the 10-year sales average.
As far as the numbers for December 2022, residential home sales in the region saw a 51.8 per cent decrease from the sales recorded in December 2021, and a 19.8 per cent decrease from the homes sold in November 2022.
Last month’s sales were also 37.7 per cent below the 10-year December sales average.
According to the REBGV, the benchmark price for a single-detached house in Ladner last month was $1,299,400, almost unchanged from the previous month. However, the benchmark experienced a 12.3 per cent drop over the previous six months, and a 6.5 per cent reduction from December 2021.
The benchmark price for a single-detached house in Tsawwassen in December 2022 was $1,438,100, an almost two per cent drop from November 2022 and almost 15 per cent down over the previous six months. The benchmark was also 7.4 per cent down from December 2021.
The benchmark price for a Ladner townhouse in December 2022 was $880,200, down 3.2 per cent from December 2021, while the benchmark for a Tsawwassen townhouse last month was $896,900, down 2.5 per cent from the same time the previous year.
The benchmark for a Ladner condo last month was $670,400 and in Tsawwassen it was $695,100, up 9.2 per cent and 7.2 per cent respectively from December 2021.
The BC Assessment Authority this week released the 2023 property assessments, figures that are based on assessed values as of July 1, 2022.
Most homes in the region are up in value, according to the latest property assessments, but the real estate market has cooled considerably since last July.
“Despite the real estate market peaking last spring and showing signs of cooling down by summer, homes were still selling notably higher around July 1, 2022 compared to the previous year,” said BC Assessment Assessor Bryan Murao in a news release this week.
“For both single-family homes and condos in Greater Vancouver, most homeowners can expect about a nine per cent rise in values whereas the Fraser Valley will be a bit higher at about 10 per cent for houses and 15 per cent for condos and townhomes.”
Murao added, “Similarly, the majority of the commercial and industrial properties across the province will also be receiving higher assessed values in the range of five per cent to 20 per cent with the Fraser Valley generally higher.”
According BC Assessment, the typical assessed value of a single-family residential house in Delta as of July 1, 2022 was 11 per cent higher compared to July 1, 2021.
