The average home in British Columbia will set you back around $449,908 as of June of this year, which is up 8.2 per cent from June 2009, however it is slightly lower than the average of $504,281 during the first six months of this year.
Throughout British Columbia, realtors have sold a combined 7,722 homes via MLS (Multiple Listing Service). This number shows sales are down about 22.5 per cent from June of 2009. Realtor Ron Antalek notes, "There's not the necessity of multiple offers and competing bids. People are able to shop. They have time to compare." On the other side of the real estate market they have seen an increase by almost 21 percent in listings with June offering 59,232 properties to choose from. Based on previous recorded rates of sales, that gives British Columbia a 9-month supply of listings, according to Cameron Nuir, the association's chief economist noted. He also felt that the tougher rules for qualifying have had an impact on home sales as first-time buyers will have more difficulty getting approved for mortgages.
Muir said, "I don't know if there's anything surprising about it, but we've seen a transition, in Vancouver in particular, from a seller's market at the start of the year to a buyer's market in the summer."
Where you are buying in British Columbia will also have an effect on your purchasing experience as certain cities are showing bigger drops in sales than others. The popular and sough-after city of Victoria showed the biggest decline with sales dipping a surprising 36 percent in June 2010, compared to June 2009. Kelowna and Vernon also saw a decline in sales by 27 per cent while Metro Vancouver's sales decreased by a whopping 30 percent.
The current trend is believed to be only temporary as Muir feels certain things will pick up again in the Fall. With the new mortgage rules only recently being put into effect, it seems some of the sting can be felt already as less people are qualifying to buy. Whether it's a lack of the upfront deposits, not meeting the annual income requirements or perhaps it's an increase in poor credit scores due to the recent economic turmoil, qualifying can be a challenge to say the least. More and more people are being turned away from traditional lenders due to bad credit not only in B.C., but all across the country. First time home buyers are highly recommended to get their credit rating in order before applying for a mortgage.
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