Residential home sales registered on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) in the Metro Vancouver market totaled 2,632 in October, a 31.9% year-over-year spike from the 1,996 sales recorded one year earlier, according to data from the Greater Vancouver Realtors (GVR).
The MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver was $1.17 million, a 1.9% decline from one year earlier and a 0.6% dip from the prior month.
The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the MLS system in Metro Vancouver last month was 14,477, a 24.8% increase compared to the 11,599 from October 2023. Across all detached, attached and apartment property types, the sales-to-active listings ratio for October was 18.8%; by property type, the ratio was 13.4% for detached homes, 22.5% for attached, and 22.2% for apartments.
“Typically, reductions to mortgage rates boost demand, and the strong October sales numbers suggest buyers may finally be responding to lower borrowing costs after waiting on the sidelines for months,” said Andrew Lis, GVR’s director of economics and data analytics. “To some market watchers, this rebound may come as a surprise, but with four consecutive rate cuts from the Bank of Canada – and more likely to come on the horizon – it was only a matter of time until signs of renewed strength in demand showed up.”
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