Real Estate Report - Months of Inventory Drops
Months of Inventory (MOI) fell to 5 months for Vancouver detached homes. It remained at, and fell to under 5 months for attached homes and apartments respectively.
Vancouver real estate is now back to the MOI levels of last spring. As a Vancouver Realtor, I was pleasantly surprised that May was a such a good month for sales volumes for both my clients and the Vancouver market. Those sales volumes are what helped drive down the MOI in spite of high volumes of active listings.
Sales volumes generally peak in the Spring so it is likely that May will be the high point for the year (though I said that about March). May's real estate sales are comparable to May of last year but the trend to lower volumes of sales remains apparent.
Unlike sales volumes, active listings don't typically peak until mid summer so It will be very interesting to see whether sales remain strong and listing volumes drop over the next few months. I will be surprised if either is the case.
Pricing through May was stable and even edged up incrementally for detached homes. If MOI numbers remain where they are now we should see the fall in prices from last year stabilize. More likely, the trend of low sales volumes and high active listings will continue and prices will begin to fall again this summer.
The MOI is reminiscent of last year's buoyant spring market which was followed by a very slow rest of the year and falling prices. In spite of good volumes of sales in May, I would caution against thinking that prices might start upward in earnest. Falling prices is the trend and I expect it to continue - particularly on detached homes.
SELLERS: DO NOT HESITATE TO CALL ME FOR A PROPERTY EVALUATION. Sell will things are moving.
BUYERS: Active listing volumes have stayed high and with the great interest rates available, it is a nice time to be shopping for a home.
I am presently selling ALDER CROSSING and THE WESTERLY two boutique developments in Fairview Slopes and West Kitsilano respectively. Pricing is sharp. At Alder Crossing Investor's Studio apartments start at $239,900 and two bedroom and den townhomes with 250 sq.ft. roof decks are priced at $769,900. WE WILL BE OPENING A DISPLAY SUITES FOR ALDER CROSSING VERY SOON. At The Westerly one bedrooms start at $319,900 and 2 bedrooms start at $469,900. The best part is that HST does NOT apply.
Remember that Months of Inventory (MOI) is a measure derived from the number of active listings during a given month divided by the number of sales that month. It indicates the theoretical length of time it would take to sell all of the properties on the market if nothing changed. Historically, 0-5 months of inventory has generally implied upward price pressure for the ensuing six months, 5-8 months of inventory meant a flat market with respect to pricing and over 8 months of inventory has, for the most part, precipitated downward price pressure.
Do not hesitate to call me if you have any questions and please pass this and my contact information along to any friends or family who might benefit from my services.
SAM WYATT VANCOUVERREALTOR