Vancouver home sales down 46% from last Sept

VANCOUVER - The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver says September's home sales dropped by 46 per cent since last year and 10 per cent from August as interest rate increases cooled buyer sentiment.

The B.C. board says sales in the region totalled 1,687 last month, down from 3,149 the September before and 1,870 in August.

Last month’s sales were almost 36 per cent below the 10-year September sales average.

Andrew Lis, the board's director of economics and data analytics, attributed the lower sales levels to the Bank of Canada hiking interest and mortgage rates in an effort to tamp down on inflation.

Those hikes have contributed to the market's composite benchmark price reaching $1,155,300 last month, up 3.9 per cent from last September but down 2.1 per cent from August.

The number of homes currently listed for sale in the area is 9,971, an eight per cent increase compared with September 2021 and a roughly three per cent jump from August.

“With fewer homes selling and new listings continuing to come to market, inventory is beginning to accumulate, providing buyers with more selection compared to last year,” Lis said, in a news release.

“With more supply and less demand within this market cycle, residential home prices have edged down in the region over the last six months.”