IN THIS ISSUE
• Surprising statistics from May
• Edgemont: prime corner lot
• Cruise ships, events for June
• Brady Bunch home for sale
Jennifer The Clarks: Dale
604-726-8768 Team JenDale 604-720-3353
Is summer heat part of real estate market?
While it’s measured in percentages and not Celsius, the real estate market appears to be keeping pace with rising temperatures heading into their respective summer seasons.
That’s the analysis from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, from the May real estate statistics that serve as a bridge from spring to summer.
Sales rose by 15.7 per cent compared to May 2022. This is something of a surprise to most experts, including the ones at the REBGV: “Back in January, few people would have predicted prices to be up as much as they are – ourselves included. Our forecast projected prices to be up modestly in 2023 by about two per cent at year-end. Instead, Metro Vancouver home prices are already up about six per cent or more across all home types.”
And 2023 isn’t yet half complete.
Prices are also rising like the temperature. Explains Andrew Lis, REBGV’s director of economics and data analytics:
“You don’t have to squint to see the reason prices continue to increase. The fundamental issue remains that there are more buyers relative to the number of willing sellers in the market.”
And because there are more buyers, that is impacting on keeping the number of homes for sale — i.e., the inventory — at historically low levels. In May, new listing activity
remained slower than usual and interest rates, while stable, remain higher than what became accepted as “usual.”
“If mortgage rates weren’t holding back market activity so much right now, I think our market would look a lot like the heydays of 2021-22, or even 2016-17,” adds Lis.
Sales rose by 15.7 per cent compared to May 2022. This is something of a surprise to most experts, including the ones at the REBGV: “Back in January, few people would have predicted prices to be up as much as they are – ourselves included. Our forecast projected prices to be up modestly in 2023 by about two per cent at year-end. Instead, Metro Vancouver home prices are already up about six per cent or more across all home types.”
And 2023 isn’t yet half complete.
Prices are also rising like the temperature. Explains Andrew Lis, REBGV’s director of economics and data analytics:
“You don’t have to squint to see the reason prices continue to increase. The fundamental issue remains that there are more buyers relative to the number of willing sellers in the market.”
And because there are more buyers, that is impacting on keeping the number of homes for sale — i.e., the inventory — at historically low levels. In May, new listing activity
remained slower than usual and interest rates, while stable, remain higher than what became accepted as “usual.”
“If mortgage rates weren’t holding back market activity so much right now, I think our market would look a lot like the heydays of 2021-22, or even 2016-17,” adds Lis. Here is the listings story…
New listings: In May, there were 5,661 on MLS in all three categories — detached, attached and apartment homes throughout Metro Vancouver. Compared to May 2022, that’s a drop of 11.5 per cent, and 4.3 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average of 5,917.
Total listings: In May, there were 9,293 homes for sale on MLS in the three categories. That’s down 10.5 per cent from the previous May and 20.6 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average.
Then there’s the sales-to-active-listings ratio. This is a critical market measurement when applied over a “sustained” period. If the ratio is above 20 per cent, that exerts upward pressure on home prices, which typically will rise above the 20 per cent threshold. the reverse is true is the ratio drops below 12 per cent.
What happened in May?
For all three property types, the ratio was 38.4 per cent. By property type, the story was 28.5 for detached homes, 45 per cent for townhomes and 45.5 for apartments.
But that’s just one month and the theory applies to “several” months in a “sustained” period.
While that’s undefined, in the last nine months, the ratio for all categories has been above 20 per cent four times and never below 12 per cent. The May figure (38.4 per cent) is the highest in that period, 5.7 per cent higher than the second-highest month.
For individual property types, there are 27 ratios — nine months times three property types — and 16 of them have exceeded the 20 per cent threshold. Only once has an individual property type ratio been below 12 per cent. Since February, 11 of the 12 individual ratios have been more than 20 per cent. May was the highest ratio for all three in the last year.
So that’s another “thermometer” for measuring the heat that appears to be coming in real estate.
New listings: In May, there were 5,661 on MLS in all three categories — detached, attached and apartment homes throughout Metro Vancouver. Compared to May 2022, that’s a drop of 11.5 per cent, and 4.3 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average of 5,917.
Total listings: In May, there were 9,293 homes for sale on MLS in the three categories. That’s down 10.5 per cent from the previous May and 20.6 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average.
Then there’s the sales-to-active-listings ratio. This is a critical market measurement when applied over a “sustained” period. If the ratio is above 20 per cent, that exerts upward pressure on home prices, which typically will rise above the 20 per cent threshold. the reverse is true is the ratio drops below 12 per cent.
What happened in May?
For all three property types, the ratio was 38.4 per cent. By property type, the story was 28.5 for detached homes, 45 per cent for townhomes and 45.5 for apartments.
But that’s just one month and the theory applies to “several” months in a “sustained” period.
While that’s undefined, in the last nine months, the ratio for all categories has been above 20 per cent four times and never below 12 per cent. The May figure (38.4 per cent) is the highest in that period, 5.7 per cent higher than the second-highest month.
For individual property types, there are 27 ratios — nine months times three property types — and 16 of them have exceeded the 20 per cent threshold. Only once has an individual property type ratio been below 12 per cent. Since February, 11 of the 12 individual ratios have been more than 20 per cent. May was the highest ratio for all three in the last year.
So that’s another “thermometer” for measuring the heat that appears to be coming in real estate.
Statistics for the markets of West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Vancouver West and Vancouver East are graphically displayed below, as always
.
Edgemont property that comes with...so much
The definition of “location” comes with multiple meanings, especially when applied to your home. It means proximity to amenities so that it’s easy to get groceries, or prescription medications, coffee and community stops, gas for the car or any number of services necessary for your daily life. It means living in a comfortable neighborhood, as part of a neighborhood, yet with the amount of privacy that is important to you. It means being in a solid real estate micro-market that delivers the assurance that your home’s value will be maintained or will increase, as much as that assurance can ever be delivered.
That sounds like 1025 Belmont Avenue in North Vancouver. It’s a prime corner and private property in Edgemont, traditionally a neighborhood of comfort and stability. It’s a short walk to the well-known Edgemont Village. It has mountain views, is south-facing and comes with a legal suite upstairs.
As locations go, 1025 Belmont is hard to beat.
To find out more about why it’s hard to beat, call or text Jennifer (604-726-8768) or Dale (604-720-3353).
That sounds like 1025 Belmont Avenue in North Vancouver. It’s a prime corner and private property in Edgemont, traditionally a neighborhood of comfort and stability. It’s a short walk to the well-known Edgemont Village. It has mountain views, is south-facing and comes with a legal suite upstairs.
As locations go, 1025 Belmont is hard to beat.
To find out more about why it’s hard to beat, call or text Jennifer (604-726-8768) or Dale (604-720-3353).
• Five bedrooms • Four bathrooms • 4,195 square feet
• Mountain view • South-facing back yard • Bright, open floor plan
• Vaulted ceilings • Legal suite of 1,000-plus square feet • Large patio and garden
• Five-minute walk to Edgemont Village • Private sunny lot more than 9,000 sq. ft.
1025 Belmont Avenue, North Vancouver
$3,495,000
Meanwhile, in other news...
The most important real estate news is widely covered in major media outlets, and sometimes analyzed here in News From Nexus. What you'll find in this section is interesting real estate news that you may not see on TV or in the mainstream newspapers.
Presale markets outlook promising duration of 2023
According to a Business In Vancouver story, 14 project launches in the Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley markets will introduce 1,661 housing units and 43 per cent of them have been sold in pre-sales. The expectation of lower mortgage rates in the coming months is encouraging buyers to re-enter the pre-sale market, which is expected to remain steady through the end of the year.‘Here’s the story of a…’ Brady Bunch family home
The television home for a blended family before the days of so many blended families is for sale again. Listed at $5.5 million, the iconic home of The Brady Bunch was purchased by HGTV five years ago for $3.5 million. The house in Studio City was renovated — with input from the six actors who played the Brady children — for a mini-series and its “curated furnishings and accessories” are included.Real estate still an investment for young Canadians
Canadians view real estate as an investment opportunity, especially the age group from 18 to 34. One in four Canadians plans to invest in real estate in the next five years, despite the low inventory of homes and increased cost of borrowing. A survey by Royal LePage reports 44 per cent of young Canadians own two or more investment properties, and 67 per cent own their homes.
The Vancouver community built with ‘character’
How would you feel about living in the City of Vancouver, owning a new-yet-old home that had the following features?
• a garage with a built-in charger for that electric car you either own or hope to own
• a garage with a built-in charger for that electric car you either own or hope to own
• a built-in connection to your gas barbecue
• five-inch baseboards
• five-inch baseboards
• no transition strips when you go from room to room, as in from the hallway (wood) to the bathroom (tile/vinyl)
• already-installed blackout blinds
• hardwood floors that sit on a sub-floor that sits on a concrete floor one and a half inches thick
• a gas stove and gas heating
• walls built of fire-retardant drywall
Except for one home that doesn't have a garage, these features are in all six homes on a large Vancouver lot on which only a 100-year-old home sat. It was designated and re-designed as a Character Home and retained, while being modernized, including beams from a century ago from the original Character Home, plus others collected from a variety of historical places around Vancouver.
• a gas stove and gas heating
• walls built of fire-retardant drywall
Except for one home that doesn't have a garage, these features are in all six homes on a large Vancouver lot on which only a 100-year-old home sat. It was designated and re-designed as a Character Home and retained, while being modernized, including beams from a century ago from the original Character Home, plus others collected from a variety of historical places around Vancouver.
It’s a mini-community that has taken character housing to another level, and a 1920 home to 2023 code. It’s an understatement to say this new, six-home community is unique. It’s also an understatement to say it’s quality construction.
The first of the homes will soon be on the market, with the others to follow throughout 2023. While they all have the features listed above, they are all different in size. They range from about 1,700 square feet to about 650 square feet. One has an elevator, another has a huge deck. They all have outdoor space. Four have skylights. They are all attractive inside and out, and they all have that special community feel.
Find out how special in an upcoming issue of News From Nexus.
Counting cruise ships — 36 visiting this month
If you’re interested in keeping score, you can check off the names of 36 cruise ships that will visit Vancouver in June, making it the busiest month so far in 2023. Some of them will be in Vancouver four times — Holland America’s Volendam and Koningdam, the Disney Wonder, Celebrity’s Eclipse and Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance of the Seas. Three ships will be here only once — the Ocean Victory, Roald Amundsen and the Star Breeze — so check the cruise-ship schedule at nexusrealtycorp.com if you want to make sure you don’t miss them.
Because there are so many people looking at homes (or living in homes) on the North Shore, along with the north side of downtown Vancouver, Nexus is happy to identify the ships they watch sailing in and out of Burrard Inlet.
The entire list for June is on the website. In News From Nexus, the monthly newsletter you’re reading, there’s always a preview of the first part of each month.
Here it is for June:
The entire list for June is on the website. In News From Nexus, the monthly newsletter you’re reading, there’s always a preview of the first part of each month.
Here it is for June:
The armchair is a classic living room staple. It's perfect for bare corners and comes in a range of styles, from traditional to ultra-modern designs. Offering support on both sides of a cushioned seat provides comfort…perfect for a reading nook.
