Benchmark sale price for a home in the West Shore up by more than $200,000 over last year

A Langford neighbourhood is seen in this photo from Dec. 10, 2021.

It seems like everywhere you look in the West Shore, new homes are being built, but demand has still outpaced supply.

“(That) continues to put the pressure on the prices,” said Sandi-Jo Ayers, past president of the Victoria Real Estate Board.

What was once seen as the capital region’s affordable community is now out of reach for many.

While benchmark prices haven’t yet hit the $1 million mark, they’re getting closer.

According to the Victoria Real Estate Board, the benchmark sale price of a single-family home in the West Shore was $912,700 in November. That’s up from $709,300 a year ago, but still cheaper than in the region’s core.

The benchmark sales price in Victoria was $1,040,700. That’s up from last year’s benchmark price of $903,700.

“I’ve lived out here for the last 21 years and I’ve never seen the activity that we’ve seen in the last 2 years,” said Ayers.

The West Shore has grown and changed over the years. It has become more attractive to those who choose to leave the core for the lifestyle options it offers.

“Fortunately, we’re in a position that within 10 minutes of any person’s door in Colwood you can be at the ocean,” said Rob Martin, Colwood’s mayor.

Colwood’s population is booming. Martin says his city is forecast to become the fourth largest jurisdiction in the capital region next year, behind Saanich, Victoria and Langford.

To house those new residents, cities on the West Shore are increasingly looking toward attached homes, rather than single-family dwellings.

“The townhouse product, what that allows us to do is give (options to) people who can’t afford a single-family home but they still want to own into the community,” said Martin.

The mayors of both Colwood and Langford say densification is the key to getting people into the housing market when prices continue to climb.

Langford is now focussing on building upwards in its downtown core in order to bring cheaper options for homeownership.

In Sooke, demand is also high and supply is low.

Marlene Arden is a realtor with Remax Camosun in Sooke. She says many buyers are coming into Sooke from the mainland and out of province. That is pushing up prices and having a negative effect on locals looking to buy.

“It’s $814,000 for our benchmark,” said Arden. “Our Sooke residents are actually getting pushed out of the Sooke market.”

Arden says Vancouver Island has been discovered and people want to live here, but when housing supply is low, prices will continue to increase until there is a balance.