FVREB March 2008

In March, selection reached a 10-year high on the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board’s Multiple Listing Service (MLS®), with the number of active listings reaching 9,361, an increase of 27 per cent compared to the 7,351 listings available during the same month last year. The previous March that offered as much or greater inventory was in 1998, when Fraser Valley had 10,148 active listings. The total number of sales processed through Fraser Valley’s MLS® in March was 1,315, a decrease of 25 per cent compared to March 2007 when 1,743 sales were processed. The number of new listings in March also decreased slightly with the Board receiving 3,277 compared to 3,369 new listings received during the same month last year, a decrease of 3 per cent.

In March, average Fraser Valley home prices continued to increase in the strong single digits for detached and townhomes and remained in the double digits for condominiums.

Kelvin Neufeld, president of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board explains, “With a significant increase in product and properties taking longer to sell, we have a more competitive market for sellers in the Fraser Valley right now, yet enough demand to keep prices trending upwards. “Our advice is that to sell your home this spring, work with your REALTOR® to ensure it’s priced correctly because buyers are taking a careful look at the broader range of homes available on the MLS®.”

In March, it took almost four days longer on average to sell a Fraser Valley detached home, 50.7 days compared to the 46.9 days during March of last year. Apartments took almost eight days longer to sell with the average days to sell in March at 47.3 compared to 39.4 during the same month last year and townhomes saw the smallest increase in average days to sell, increasing 1.8 days, going from 33.6 in March 2007 to 35.4 days last month.

The price of a single-family detached home in March averaged $550,259, an 8.1 per cent increase in one year. The average price in March 2007 was $509,197. The average price of a Fraser Valley townhouse in March was $346,949, an increase of 8.6 per cent compared to last year’s average price of $319,592. Average apartment prices in the Fraser Valley increased by 13.6 per cent compared to last year. In March 2007, they averaged $203,874 compared to $231,669 last month.

If sales don't pick up soon we could see some really serious price declines here and quickly too. I foresee negative year over year price changes by July if things stay on the current trend.