By Canadian Press

Vancouver’s April home sales down 16.5% from a year ago: board

May 2, 2023 | 8:37 AM

VANCOUVER — The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver says April home sales slid 16.5 per cent from a year ago as new listings remained below historical norms.

The B.C. board says sales for the month totalled 2,741, almost 16 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average.

The composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver hit $1,170,700 last month, down 7.4 per cent from a year ago but up 2.4 per cent from March.

There were 4,307 new listings last month, a 29.7 per cent decrease, when compared with the prior April and a 22 per cent drop from the 10-year seasonal average of 5,525.

The board saw the numbers as a sign that home sales are staging a comeback and headed toward levels seen last spring before eight consecutive interest rate hikes were carried out.

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The rate hikes eroded buying power and sent buyers to the sidelines, but the board believes a shift is underway.

“The fact we are seeing prices rising and sales rebounding this spring tells us homebuyers are returning with confidence after a challenging year for our market, with mortgage rates roughly doubling,” Andrew Lis, the board’s director of economics and data analytics, said in a news release. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 2, 2023.

The Canadian Press