BC Home Sales Sizzle at Record Pace Vancouver, BC – March 14, 2016.

The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 9,637 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) last month, up 44.7 per cent from February of last year.

This smashed the previous record of 8,157 unit sales for the month of February recorded in 1992.

Total sales dollar volume was $7.51 billion in February, up 76.4 per cent compared to the previous year.

“Downward pressure on active listings has created significant upward pressure on home prices in some regions, particularly in Vancouver and the Fraser Valley,” added Muir.

“While home builders have responded with a record pace of housing starts for BC last month, the supply isn’t expected alleviate the imbalance in these markets in the near term.”

The year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume increased 73.6 per cent to $11.9 billion, when compared with the same period in 2015.

Sales to Active Listings (number of residential units sold in month of February compared to the number available on the market):

Fraser Valley:  59.2%   (Compared to 20.4% in Feb 2015)

Greater Vancouver:  52.6%   (Compared to 24.2% in Feb 2015)

Average Selling Price:  

Fraser Valley:  Increased 24.9% (over Feb 2015)

Greater Vancouver:  Increased 25.6%  (over Feb 2015)

“Housing demand is now at a break-neck pace,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist.

“Home sales last month were not only a record for the month of February, but on a seasonally adjusted basis, demand has never been stronger in the province.”