Housing sales did not pick up in August across Langley, but a regional builder says interest rate cuts will likely lead to a busier market in 2025.

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) released their monthly statistics on sales and home listings for August on Sept. 4, showing that Langley had yet another slow month.

There were 75 sales of single-family homes in Langley in August, down 9.6% from the previous year, and down 3.8% from July.

Townhouses saw just 63 sales, an 18.2% decline from the same month last year, and a whopping 40% drop from July’s sales numbers. There were 86 condos sold, which was down 14% from the previous August, and 10.4% down from July’s numbers.

The number of homes listed for sale remained much higher than a year ago, but were largely flat compared to July.

There were 463 single family homes listed for sale in Langley, 33.8% more than in the same month last year, down 3.9% from July. A total of 248 townhouses were listed, 83.7% more than a year ago, and up 2.1% from July. As for condos, 401 were listed, 54.8% more than in August 2023, and up 2.3% from July.

The relatively slow sales and decent selection may have resulted in prices only rising slightly, or staying close to flat, for all three housing types.

The benchmark price for a single family home in Langley was $1,647,300 in August, up just 1.2% from the same month last year. Townhouses rose 2.6% year-over-year, to $884,700, and condos inched up 0.% over the same period, at a benchmark of $611,600.

The same day the FVREB released its newest data, the Bank of Canada announced its third interest rate cut of the year, reducing its key overnight lending rate to 4.25%.

Derek Fenton, a vice-president at homebuilder Zenterra Developments, noted that the difference for people shopping for a mortgage last week, versus this week, will be minimal. The interest rate cut was widely expected and “most of it was priced-in,” said Fenton.

But the bigger picture is that the overall sentiment is that inflation is under control. The Bank of Canada has signalled that more rate cuts are likely.

In the near term, that means people will be able to qualify for mortgages worth more than they would have been able to a year ago.

“People were looking for a sign, and people were looking for direction,” said Fenton.

He said that the market this fall will be very telling for local housing.

For builders, it means sales will go up, which makes it easier to get new housing projects started.

“It’s going to lead to more homes being built,” said Fenton.

Housing Close to Buyers Market in Fraser Valley by Matthew Claxton | Langley Advance Times