Real estate listings in Victoria are in short supply and the value of those homes appears to be rising. Part of that trend comes as the result of economic factors outside of Victoria.
The year started with the busiest month of sales in Victoria since 2002, according to statistics released by the Victoria Real Estate Board (VREB). In fact, the total of 539 properties sold in January represented a 53.6 per cent increase over the previous year.
B次元官网网址淥ur problem now is really related to going out there and shaking out some new listings,B次元官网网址� said David Langlois, a broker with McDonald Realty in Victoria. B次元官网网址淲e had 2,471 listings at the end of January this year, but that was a decrease of 24.7 per cent from last yearB次元官网网址檚 numbers.B次元官网网址�
According to Langlois, at least some of the market strength is due to economic realities outside of Victoria.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e certainly seen buyers coming in from Vancouver,B次元官网网址� said Langlois. B次元官网网址淭he housing market there has created an incentive to come to Victoria. ThatB次元官网网址檚 always been the case, but itB次元官网网址檚 just accelerating now.B次元官网网址�
The most recent statistics from the VREB show that about 7.5 per cent of Victoria buyers now come from the Lower Mainland.
And itB次元官网网址檚 easy to see why.
The average house price in Metro Vancouver was recently reported to be a mind-boggling $1.83 million, according to the Vancouver Real Estate Board. Compare that with the average price in Victoria of $620,000 during the same period and itB次元官网网址檚 not hard to understand why some individuals in Vancouver may choose to make the jump to the Island.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 certainly something that IB次元官网网址檝e seen more and more,B次元官网网址� said Victoria real estate agent Tony Joe. B次元官网网址淛ust recently IB次元官网网址檝e done some multi-unit listings in Fairfield and the level of interest from Vancouver surprised me. WhatB次元官网网址檚 happening is that people who might have previously invested in revenue properties in places like Kitsilano are now looking at property in Fairfield or elsewhere in the Victoria area. For them it makes more sense since property cost to revenue ratio makes much more sense.B次元官网网址�
Some of the interest is also related to the type of properties that a Vancouver buyerB次元官网网址檚 money can secure.
B次元官网网址淚 had a couple whose home in Vancouver was worth $3 million,B次元官网网址� said Joe. B次元官网网址淪ince they could work from anywhere, they opted to sell there and buy a much better home in the UplandsB次元官网网址 bigger home with more to offer.B次元官网网址�
Economics aside, Langlois is quick to emphasize that a move to Victoria has very often been about lifestyle.
That traditional lifestyle choice has recently served to fuel another influx of buyers B次元官网网址� this time from Calgary. These moves, though, are more often motivated by a desire to cash out while itB次元官网网址檚 still possible to do so.
With the weakening of the resource sector in Alberta, home sales in Calgary last year plunged some 26 percent from 2014 and the benchmark price of homes is predicted to fall by 3.44 per cent to $438,652, according to the Calgary Real Estate Board.
B次元官网网址淭he Calgary buyers are coming in now because they see the latest downturn as the B次元官网网址榮traw that broke the camelB次元官网网址檚 back,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� said Joe. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e had buyers from Calgary who are simply choosing to make the jump to retirement or relocation nowB次元官网网址hey arenB次元官网网址檛 willing to wait for things there to turn around.B次元官网网址�
editor@goldstreamgazette.com
