Vancouver-area home sales down nearly 5% as prices rise: board

The Vancouver-areareal estate board says the number of homes that changed hands in March fell almost five per cent from the same month last year, with the total number of sales nearly one-third lower than the 10-year average.

Greater Vancouver Realtors says there were 2,415 home sales in the region last month, a 4.7 per cent decrease from the 2,535 sales recorded in March 2023.

That came as the total number of homes in the area listed for sale in March rose 22.5 per cent year-over-year to 10,552, which is 6.3 per cent above the 10-year seasonal average.

The composite benchmark home price for Metro Vancouver was $1,196,800, up 4.5 per cent from a year ago and up 1.1 per cent from February.

Andrew Lis, Greater Vancouver Realtors' director of economics and data analytics, says the market isn't as hot as it was last spring, especially for buyers.

"The overall market balance continues inching deeper into sellers' market territory,"said Lis.

The areas and municipalities covered by Greater Vancouver Realtors are Bowen Island, Burnaby, Coquitlam, Maple Ridge, New Westminster, North Vancouver, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Richmond, South Delta, Squamish, the Sunshine Coast, Vancouver, West Vancouver and Whistler.