While housing sales in Greater Vancouver tumbled 27.6 per cent in the first 11 months of 2012 - and look to end the year down 30 per cent from a year earlier - the suburban community of Chilliwack is seeing the highest sales increase in British Columbia.
The B.C. Real Estate Association reports that Chilliwack posted a province-leading 28.6 per cent increase in sales as of the end of November, compared to a 17 per cent decline across the entire province. Chilliwack also reported the highest residential sales volume increase in the province, with a 36.7 per cent spike from 2011.
Chilliwack and District Real Estate Board president Cynthia Admiral says the strong market is all about price. In Chilliwack, which is about 90 minutes east of Vancouver in the Fraser Valley, a typical home sells for around $350,000, less than half that of Greater Vancouver.
"Investors are attracted to markets that are stable and not prone to wild price fluctuations. Combined with the commuter factor, where home ownership is far more affordable than the metro areas, it paves the way for continued sales growth in the New Year," Admiral said.
Only three other B.C. communities posted higher housing sales in the first 11 months of 2012 than in the year previous: the Okanagan mainline, anchored by Kelowna, and Vancouver Island, north of Victoria, where sales were up 3.7 per cent in each area; and the Kootenays, which experienced a 19.3 per cent increase.
The Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board posted the worst sales record, followed by Victoria, down 24.7 per cent, the Fraser Valley, down 19.2 per cent, and Powell River, where sales collapsed 47 per cent.
As of November, the average price of a home sold in B.C. through the MLS service was down 9.1 per cent from a year earlier to $480,861.
