Home sales north of the 颅Malahat Drive nearly doubled in 颅September compared with last year according to figures released by the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board.
There were 1,287 sales last month compared to 692 in September 2019.
鈥淭he strength of our housing market has surprised us somewhat,鈥� said VIREB president Kevin Reid. 鈥淲e frankly did not expect it to recover so quickly from the COVID-19 effect.鈥�
Last month there were 643 single-family homes sold in September compared to 324 the previous year. Sales of condo apartments rose by 46 per cent year over year while row/townhouse sales increased by 28 per cent.
Reid attributes the recovery to pent-up demand, low mortgage rates, and persistent supply shortages.
鈥淥ur market is quite fluid right now, which makes it difficult to determine trends, but we have noticed that some buyers are advancing their retirement plans due to the pandemic,鈥� he said. 鈥淓conomic uncertainty is motivating other consumers to downsize and reduce their debt load.鈥�
Although Reid expects the market to slow down in the coming months, he remains optimistic. However, he cautions sellers not to be unrealistic when it comes to pricing their homes.
鈥淐orrectly pricing your home is the key to a quick sale and may even result in multiple offers. Overpriced properties tend to linger whether we are in a buyers鈥� or sellers鈥� market,鈥� he said.
The benchmark price of a single-family home hit $527,300 in September in all regions on the Island excluding Greater Victoria, a marginal increase from the previous year and one per cent lower than in August. The year-over-year benchmark price of an apartment rose by three per cent, hitting $309,400 but down slightly from the previous month. The benchmark price of a townhouse rose by six per cent year over year, climbing to $434,300 and up slightly from August.
Wilson to stay on as chamber chair
John Wilson, chief executive of the Wilson鈥檚 Group of 颅companies will remain in place as chair of聽the Greater Victoria Chamber聽of Commerce for a second year.
The chamber announced a new board with Kris Wirk named vice-chair, Dan Dagg as past chair, Christina Clarke as secretary and Moira Hauk as treasurer.
The other directors for the coming year are Rose Arsenault, Ian Batey, Judith Ethier, Pedro Marquez, Richard Michaels, Tom Plumb, Capt. Sam Sader, Ann Squires Ferguson, Erin Boggs and Bruce Williams.
鈥淭he Chamber always has an impressive group of candidates who put their name forward to be on our board. This year was no exception as we had a 颅number of exceptional 颅community 颅leaders looking to join our group and play a role during this 颅critical time,鈥� said Wilson.
鈥淭here is truth in the saying that, when the going gets tough, the tough get going. That鈥檚 clearly demonstrated by the chamber鈥檚 board of directors.鈥�
