Last month, upwards of 11,400 homes traded hands across British Columbia, but levels have fallen from the record highs set in March 2021.

In a statistics release, the British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reported that 11,463 total properties were sold through the province’s MLS system during March. This marks a 24.1% decrease from the same month last year when 15,096 homes were sold.

Greater Vancouver recorded the most homes sold in March, with 4,405 properties trading hands. Home sales in Chilliwack reported the biggest year-over-year change as sales fell 41.1% from 672 to 396 transactions in a year.

“Home sales in the province continue to moderate from record highs of this time last year,” said BCREA’s chief economist, Brendon Ogmundson, in a press release. “Given the sharp rise in Canadian mortgage rates and expected tightening from the Bank of Canada, activity will likely slow further in the second half of this year.”

The Bank of Canada is expected to announce its next policy rate decision on April 13th, which could heighten rates by 0.5%.

Active listings fall as prices continue to rise

When it comes to home supply, provincial active listings were 12.4% lower in March compared to the same month in 2021, falling from 22,394 to 19,618 active listings in a year. The number of active listings increased the most in Powell River, growing 134% annually to 96 listings.

However, the total inventory of homes available for sale in BC is now under 20,000 units, well below the 40,000 listings needed to foster a balanced housing market. The sales-to-active-listings percentage for B.C. decreased annually last month, falling from 67.4% in March 2021 to 58.4% in March 2022.

The average home price reported over the BC MLS was $1.096 million last month, up 15.7% from $946,813 recorded in March 2021. Powell River reported the most price growth, where the average cost of a home climbed 40.6% from $522,450 to $734,454 over a year. All BC real estate boards reported an increase in average home prices last month with the exception of South Peace, where prices fell 22.4% yearly from $328,743 to $255,063.

By total sales volume, $12.6 billion worth of real estate was exchanged last month, a 12.1% decline from the same period a year ago when $14.2 billion in sales was transacted.

Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume has decreased 4.1% from $30 billion in March 2021 to $28.8 billion as of last month. Residential unit sales were down 20.1% year-to-date to 26,577 units as the average MLS residential price increased 20% to $1.086 million.

BCREA : BC Reports Over 11,400 Homes Sold in March by Michelle McNally | Livabl