Vancouver home sales fall in market 'starved' for inventory
BNN Bloomberg
“This market is completely starved of inventory and it’s creating excessive bidding wars, another ramp up in home prices."
VANCOUVER -- The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver says January home sales slowed from a record-setting pace last year as the number of properties available dropped.
The B.C. board says home sales totalled 2,285 last month, an almost five per cent decrease from 2,389 in January 2021 and a 15 per cent fall from 2,688 in December 2021.
However, the board says sales last month were 25.3 per cent above the 10-year January average.
The board also recorded 4,170 new listings last month, down almost seven per cent from 4,480 homes last January, but more than double December 2021, when 1,945 homes were listed.
“This market is completely starved of inventory and it’s creating excessive bidding wars, another ramp up in home prices. To put it frank, it’s a disaster out there,” said Steve Saretsky, a Vancouver-based realtor, in an interview Wednesday.
He said a big factor behind the lack of listings is the “fear” among would-be home sellers about becoming a buyer in the market.