Telling a tale of two regions, residential land acquisition totals went in opposite directions on either side of the Fraser River during the last year.

According to Zonda Urban’s Q3-2021 Metro Vancouver Residential Land Report, released today, the total dollar amount of multi-family land sales decreased 7% year-over-year in sub-markets north of the Fraser River, while transaction volume rose 73% in sub-markets south of the river, demonstrating a shift southeast across the Lower Mainland.

The majority of northern sub-markets actually saw year-over-year totals rise, led by West Vancouver and Squamish with increases of 662% and 128% respectively, but couldn’t offset declining numbers in the region’s core.

Despite a modest increase in Vancouver East, year-over-year sales totals dropped a combined 23% in the three Vancouver sub-markets. Downtown saw the biggest decline, plunging 47% with approximately $620 million in transactions after nearly $1.2 billion during the previous 12 months.

It was a different story south of the Fraser River, as each sub-market posted a year-over-year increase in transaction volume. Abbotsford experienced the most dramatic shift, increasing $118 million for a difference of 193% year-over-year.

“Central Surrey/North Delta remained the highest grossing sub-market in the South of Fraser areas for total sales dollar volume with over $604 million in multi-family residential land transactions being recorded over the past year,” Zonda Urban reported, noting the area had the third-highest total across all Metro Vancouver sub-markets, trailing only Vancouver West and Vancouver Downtown.

On a quarterly basis, multi-family residential land sales reflected the same divergent narrative. Northern sub-markets totalled $714 million during the third quarter, a 29% decrease, while their southern counterparts saw a 42% increase, exceeding $450 million to post the region’s highest quarterly sales figure since Zonda began tracking the metric in 2016.

A transition from higher to lower density helped explain the money movement, specifically investment in low rise designed properties, which rose 93% year-over-year, an increase of more than $1 billion. Low rise and townhome sites combined for 66% of sales volume during the last year compared to 39% during the previous 12 months.

Metro Vancouver’s Multi-Family Land Sales Shift to The South by Ryan Garner | Livabl