Victoria outpaced all other Canadian cities in terms of home sales in July, officials say
Latest official figures revealed that Victoria outstripped every other Canadian city in terms of home sales in July, boasting of more than 20 per cent growth compared to the same time last year.
Victoria listings also declined by 45 per cent year-over-year last month despite the “seasonal slowdown that we expect this time of year,” Victoria Real Estate Board president Mike Nugent told The Globe and Mail.
Concurrent with these developments is the upward trend in prices, with the benchmark value for a single-family home in Victoria growing by nearly 24 per cent in the 12 months prior to July, up to $741,100.
And these numbers might prove to be just the beginning, BMO Nesbitt Burns senior economist Sal Guatieri said.
“Given its proximity to Greater Vancouver and its 43-per-cent lower prices on a typical property, Victoria’s market could get another injection of fuel if foreign buyers look outside the [Greater Vancouver Area] to avoid the new 15-per-cent land transfer tax,” Guatieri wrote in a report.
The Victoria Real Estate Board is opting to wait and see before offering its take on such a possibility, however.
“Does this mean international demand will spill over into Victoria and other areas of B.C.? We won’t know until we see the data,” Nugent said.
“The Capital Regional district saw 2 per cent out-of-country buyers in the year of 2015. Although this is a small percentage of our buyers, anecdotally foreign buyers do tend to favour the same core neighbourhoods and therefore can have an impact on those areas,” he added.
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Victoria listings also declined by 45 per cent year-over-year last month despite the “seasonal slowdown that we expect this time of year,” Victoria Real Estate Board president Mike Nugent told The Globe and Mail.
Concurrent with these developments is the upward trend in prices, with the benchmark value for a single-family home in Victoria growing by nearly 24 per cent in the 12 months prior to July, up to $741,100.
And these numbers might prove to be just the beginning, BMO Nesbitt Burns senior economist Sal Guatieri said.
“Given its proximity to Greater Vancouver and its 43-per-cent lower prices on a typical property, Victoria’s market could get another injection of fuel if foreign buyers look outside the [Greater Vancouver Area] to avoid the new 15-per-cent land transfer tax,” Guatieri wrote in a report.
The Victoria Real Estate Board is opting to wait and see before offering its take on such a possibility, however.
“Does this mean international demand will spill over into Victoria and other areas of B.C.? We won’t know until we see the data,” Nugent said.
“The Capital Regional district saw 2 per cent out-of-country buyers in the year of 2015. Although this is a small percentage of our buyers, anecdotally foreign buyers do tend to favour the same core neighbourhoods and therefore can have an impact on those areas,” he added.
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