B.C.'s residential housing market recovered from last January's decade low, but retreated from December's roaring market, according to data released Thursday by the B.C. Real Estate Association.
January housing sales rose 118% to 4,619 units compared to the same month in 2009 in the midst of the global financial crisis. However, January 2010 sales fell 16% from the total number of units sold in December.
All of B.C.'s major housing markets reported significant gains, with Vancouver reporting a 154.2% increase in the number of units sold, followed by the Fraser Valley (150.7%), Vancouver Island (118.3%), Okanagan Mainline (82.5%) and Victoria (60.8%).
Affordability continued to erode in most of B.C.'s major real estate markets, with Vancouver reporting an 18.9% increase in the average price of a home, followed by Victoria (18.1%), Okanagan Mainline (15.9%), the Fraser Valley (8.3%) and Vancouver Island (6.9%).
One of the primary drivers of increased prices was double-digit declines in the number of active listings in B.C.'s major markets. Victoria reported a 29.7% decline in the number of active listings in January 2010 compared to January 2009, followed by a 25% decline in Vancouver, 17.1% decline on Vancouver Island and a 15.8% decline in the Fraser Valley.