VICTORIA -- Vancouver Island’s real estate market is showing signs of recovery as B.C. continues along its restart plan.
Sales of single-family detached homes on Vancouver Island are up since the market dropped drastically in the month of April due to the pandemic.
Real estate sales dropped a whopping 58 per cent in April due to uncertainty in the market caused by COVID-19. As life returns to normal, the market is recovering with single detached homes in high demand.
Analysts say the inventory for single family homes in Greater Victoria is down, and that over the last two weeks, one-in-four homes have sold over the asking price.
In Nanaimo, the real estate market is showing similar results.
“We are seeing multiple offers in this market, absolutely,” said Kaye Broens, president of the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board.
“We are very, very low on inventory and therefore when a well-priced home hits the market in move-in condition, you’re going to see a bit of fight for that.”
Condos, however, have a different story to tell.
“Condos are a lot weaker right now. The sales are down more and inventory is coming on at much faster pace,” said Leo Spalteholz, a real estate analyst.
Spalteholz says a lot of the condos that are flooding the market are former Air BnB units. However, the real estate expert says that a more crowded market doesn’t mean a condo won’t sell.
“I listed (a condo) two weeks ago,” said Charlie DePape, Royal LePage real estate agent.
“I listed it at about three in the afternoon and by four o’clock the next day we had an offer that was subsequently negotiated – so it happened very quickly,” he said.
Meanwhile, the cheap cost of borrowing is also fuelling the island’s real estate recovery.
“Yesterday I saw some online advertisements for mortgages as low as 1.99,” said Broen.
“So, if you are thinking about getting into the market at 1.99 that’s bordering on a historic low.”
Analysts say it’s too early to tell how the pandemic will affect the market in the long term, and whether prices will be affected.
