House prices continue their steady climb as the supply of homes for sale stays low.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver’s (REBGV) numbers for November indicates that residential home sales in the region saw an 11.9 per cent increase from the sales recorded in November 2020, but an almost two per cent decrease from the homes sold in October 2021, due in large part to low supply.
The REBGV notes it’s critical that the supply crunch remains the focus for addressing the housing affordability challenges in the region.
It’s a similar story from the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, which notes robust demand for real estate continued, with the real estate board recording the region’s second-highest volume of sales of all property types for the month. Those sales were second only to November 2020.
According to the REBGV, the benchmark price for a detached house in Ladner last month was $1,346,600, a 27.5 per cent increase from November 2020.
The benchmark for a house in Tsawwassen was $1,476,700 in November, a 26.8 per cent year-to-year increase.
The November benchmark for a Ladner and Tsawwassen townhome was $797,100 and $872,500 respectively, while benchmark for a Ladner and Tsawwassen condo was $593,700 and $654,300 respectively.
The benchmark price of a detached house in North Delta was $1,351,300 in November, a 37.4 per cent hike from November 2020.
The benchmark for a North Delta townhouse and condo last month was $725,700 and $432,000 respectively.
A recent Delta report to city council on the city’s new Housing Action Plan notes increases in household income are not keeping pace with the increases in rents or home sale prices, while many Delta households spend more than 30 per cent of their income on shelter costs.
The report also notes the housing affordability challenges experienced by renters generally require more intervention than the challenges experienced by owners.
The city’s Housing Needs Assessment Report, which guided the recommendations contained in the action plan, notes, “Even though more apartments and townhouses are being built these days, Delta's housing stock is still mostly single detached houses. With most of Delta's housing over 45 years old and starting to come to the end of its useful life, we have an opportunity to rethink our future housing types to best meet our residents' needs.”
