Vancouver, BC – August 11, 2022.
The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 5,572 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in July 2022, a decrease of 42.4 per cent from July 2021. The average MLS® residential price in BC was $923,449, a 3.6 per cent increase from $891,376 recorded in July 2021. Total sales dollar volume was $5.1 billion, a 40.3 per cent decline from the same time last year.
“High mortgage rates continued to lower sales activity in July,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “Many regions around the province have seen sales slip to levels well below normal for this time of year.”
As the pace of sales activity declines below normal levels, inventory is accumulating. Provincial active listings rose 28 per cent year-over-year, though from a very low level in July 2021. Inventories remain quite low, but the slow pace of sales has tipped some markets into balanced or even buyers’ market territory.
Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume was down 20 per cent from the same period in 2021 to $58.7 billion. Residential unit sales were down 29.3 per cent to 56,801 units, while the average MLS® residential price was up 13.2 per cent to $1.03 million.