November 2008 Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver MLS Statistics

It’s that time of the month once again. It never ceases to amaze me how rapidly one month melts away into the next. In fact, I’ve found that tracking the MLS stats periodically (I do that in this blog both weekly and monthly) makes me more conscious of the passing of time than I have ever been.

In any case, back to the purpose of this post.

Just yesterday, the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) released the MLS statistics for November 2008. This months dramatic headline reads, “Slow Home Sales Create Window of Opportunity”. I’m quite certain that’s the second month in a row that they used the term “opportunity” in the headline.

Residential property sales declined 69.7% in November 2008 to 874 from 2,883 sales that were recorded in November 2007.

As for prices, the residential benchmark price declined 12.8% from May to November 2008. This results in an 8.3% decline year over year (from November 2007 to November 2008). The residential benchmark price was $568,411 in May 2008 and is $495,704 in November 2008.

“Time of turmoil, from we always emerge, offer excellent opportunities to buy quality real estate,” says REBGV president, Dave Watt. “For those whose personal finances allow them to get involved, there are opportunities in today’s housing market that have not been seen in many years.”

Along with a decline in sales, we saw a decline in new listings as well. Listings fell 10.8% to 3,012 in November 2008 vs 3,377 in November 2007. Active listings fell 4.7% to 18,348 from 19,257 last month.

Below, you can review a chart I compiled of the MLS data only for Vancouver East and Vancouver West. This provides those interested in Vancouver real estate a much more specific and accurate view of what is happening in your own city.

In reviewing the data, you’ll notice that Vancouver West appears to have had a far worse month than Vancouver East. Sales fell more dramatically, listings did not come down as much and prices dropped more sharply on the Westside than the Eastside last month.

Since hitting a high of active listings in September, we’ve been seeing a steady decline over the past two months (-3.73% this month over last). Fewer listings are selling, but fewer new listings are coming onto the market as well and older listings that haven’t sold are coming off the market.

Here are some specific numbers for the month of November2008. The numbers in the right column indicate the month-to-month change for that statistic:

More Info on Vancouver Real Estate

Do you love real estate statistics? Well, have I got a deal for you! I compile, report and analyze the real estate statistics for Vancouver East and Vancouver West on both a monthly and weekly basis. You can review it all right here:

If you are thinking of buying or selling, or just have questions, contact me here or send me a quick email.