Metro Vancouver home sales remain strong through August

The selling and buying of homes across Metro Vancouver continues at a good clip, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the industry-runReal Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV), residential home sales in the region were up 36.6 per cent in August 2020 compared to one year earlier.

In total,3,047 properties were sold last month compared to the 2,231 sold in August 2019.

"People who put their home-buying and -selling plans on hold in the spring have been returning to the market throughout the summer," REBGVchair Colette Gerbersaid.

The number of people listing their homes for sale is also up, from 3,747 in August 2019 to 5,813 in August 2020, an increase of 55.1 per cent.

The benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver houses, condos and apartments is currently $1,038,700, representing a 5.3 per cent increase over August 2019 and a 0.7 per cent increase compared to July 2020.

Gerber says the Metro Vancouver housing market remains competitive because of low interest rates and limited overall supply.But it's impossible to say if it will remain that way.

"Like everything else in our lives these days, the uncertainty COVID-19 presents makes it challenging to predict what will happen this fall," she said.