Pre-sale new homes hitting the Metro Vancouver market will spike in 2018 following a roadblock in the approvals process last year that caused some to be delayed.

Approximately 62 projects with 11,064 total units are slated to be launched this year, an increase of 33% compared to 2017, according to MLA Advisory’s Market Intel 2018 report, released on Thursday.

However, price growth among pre-sale projects is expected to slow this year.

“Sales activity for multi-family developments will remain strong throughout 2018, although we are expecting slower absorptions than 2017 and more sustainable price escalation closer to 8 to 10%,” writes Suzana Goncalves, chief advisory officer and partner at MLA Canada, in the report.

MLA Canada, a Vancouver-based new home marketing firm, is the parent company of MLA Advisory.

Thanks to strong market fundamentals, including job growth, consistent population growth and housing starts, MLA Advisory predicts 2018 to be a stable and positive year in Metro Vancouver’s overall housing market.

But in its analysis, the group cautions that lengthy approvals processes and complexities around lending will be the major risks affecting needed supply in the market this year.

In 2018, Burnaby is expected to be the most active concrete market in the region with an estimated total of over 4,500 units launching in 2018, compared to 1,920 in the previous year.

Burnaby’s emerging neighbourhood of Brentwood is expected to have the most pre-sale units released this year with a total of 2,690. In Downtown Vancouver, new home inventory will grow with an estimated total of 752 units launching compared to 448 in 2017.

In 2018, North Vancouver is predicted to have the least amount of new home supply enter the market with a total of 133 compared to 1,102 in 2017.

Here’s How Many New Construction Homes Are Slated to Hit the Metro Vancouver Market in 2018 by Kerrisa Wilson | Buzz Buzz Home