Now that March is upon us and the Sun is poking out from behind the clouds from time to time more people's thoughts begin to drift to dreams of Real Estate.  Springtime is typically the busy time of year in the market and for a good reason, things actually begin to look nice again!  Nothing helps curb appeal like a blossoming cherry tree or row of blooming daffodils.  For those Albertan buyers the simple lack of snow banks in February is enough to inspire them to buy a house.

The most frequently asked question of me at this time of year is "How's the Market going to be this year".  As usual my crystal ball has been on the fritz and the Magic 8 ball continues to mock me with replies of "Ask again Later".  What I am able to do though, is look into the past and use this information to try and paint a picture of the future.  The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver provides us with enough statistics to bore even the most interested of economists to death but there are a couple of choice figures that I think are interesting. 

The first of these has to do with median sale prices on the coast.  If we take a look at the 12 month period leading up February 2013 and compare it with the previous two years ranging less than $10,000 in the past 3 years. 

If we continue to see low rates in mortgages, then I expect that this trend will continue this year as well.  Things are taking longer to sell and it's not a lot of fun to be a seller in a time crunch but for the most part prices are stable and many sellers are choosing to wait for the right buyer rather than slashing thier prices.

The other statistic that is interesting to look at as we move into the spring is the level of inventory coming on the market.  For the last couple of years February has seen huge surges in listing inventory, evidenced by every other house having a "For Sale" sign in front of it.  This past February has been a bit more subdued:

Now keep in mind that our total listing count on the Coast is still pretty high, and it's still early in the season but if this trend continues then it could make the market more favourable to sellers as reduced inventory will force buyers to be less choosy about what they want.

If you have any questions about the market and how it pertains to your house specifically then please give me a call and I'd be happy to go over the statistics in your neighborhood with you.

Allen