Home prices adapt to affordability demands

VANCOUVER, B.C. - October 2, 2008 - The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver declined 42.9 per cent in September 2008 to 1,585 from the 2,776 sales recorded in September 2007.

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties increased 28.8 per cent to 6,142 in September 2008 compared to September 2007, when 4,770 new units were listed.

"After five years of unprecedented increases, housing prices are beginning to realign," REBGV president, Dave Watt said. "Although the economic situation in the United States has affected consumer confidence globally, the consensus view remains that our local housing market is underpinned by solid economic fundamentals."

Sales of detached properties in September 2008 declined 50.3 per cent to 546 from the 1,099 units sold during the same period in 2007. The benchmark price, as calculated by the MLSLink Housing Price Index®, for detached properties declined 1.6 per cent from September 2007 to $726,331. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for a detached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 5.8 per cent.

Sales of apartment properties declined 35.1 per cent last month to 764, compared to 1,177 sales in September 2007. The benchmark price of an apartment property declined 0.7 per cent from September 2007 to $369,062. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for an apartment property in Greater Vancouver has declined 5.2 per cent.

Attached property sales in September 2008 decreased 45 per cent to 275, compared with the 500 sales in September 2007. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 2.5 per cent between September 2007 and 2008 to $464,478. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for an attached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 3 per cent.