The BCREA Commercial Leading Indicator (CLI) broke a string of two consecutive declines, eking out a 0.1 point increase to an index value of 120.0 in the fourth quarter of 2015. On a year-over-year basis, the CLI was 0.4 per cent higher than in 2014.

Although the trend in the CLI is currently pointing to a neutral economic and financial environment for commercial real estate, the overall BC economy remains strong, particularly in comparison to its neighboring provinces.

“Financial market jitters offset solid gains from a strong BC...

In the last week, the need for answers about Vancouver’s increasingly freakish real estate market has reached a fever pitch.

The need for action is particularly dire after a succession of revelations: The Globe’s investigation this week of the legal but controversial practice of contract assignment that has seen some real estate agents make windfall profits by selling and re-selling the same home. The appearance of crowdfunding firms targeting Vancouver property. The demolition of newly renovated mansions. And the finding that there’s been a 39 per cent increase in the number of...

According to statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), national home sales rebounded in January 2016 compared to the previous month.

Highlights:

• National home sales edged up by 0.5% from December to January
• Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was up 8% compared to January 2015.
• The number of newly listed homes retreated by 4.9% from December to January.
• The Canadian housing market has tightened but remains balanced overall.
• The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) rose 7.7% year-over-year in January.
• The national average sale price rose 17% on a year-over-year basis...

The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) welcomes the proposed changes to the Property Transfer Tax (PTT) and other measures in Budget 2016 to improve housing affordability in the province and collect better information about property transactions.

The PTT exemption for new homes up to $750,000 will help stimulate supply of new housing and provide more opportunities for home ownership across the province. This exemption is commendable, however with many new housing projects taking years to complete, it may not have the immediate impact desired by the government....

The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 5,831 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) last month, up 33.2 per cent from January of last year. Total sales dollar volume was $4.39 billion in January, up 69.1 per cent compared to the previous year.

The average MLS® residential price in the province was up 26.9 per cent year-over-year, to $752,906.

“The BC housing market continues to build on momentum from a very strong 2015,” said Brendon Ogmundson, BCREA Economist. &ldqu...

The trend measure of housing starts in Canada was 199,169 units in January compared to 203,304 in December, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.

“Housing starts trended down across the country with the exception of Ontario,” said Bob Dugan, CMHC Chief Economist. “The overall decline is mostly attributable to a slowdown in the Prairies where the housing starts trend was at a 4-year low in January. The slowdown in new housing activity coincides...

Home buyer activity remains at near record levels across the Metro Vancouver housing market.

Residential property sales in Greater Vancouver totalled 2,519 in January 2016, an increase of 31.7 per cent from the 1,913 sales recorded in January 2015 and a 10.9 per cent decline compared to December 2015 when 2,827 home sales occurred.

Last month’s sales were 46 per cent above the 10-year sales average for the month and rank as the second highest January on record. “Fundamental economics are driving today’s market. Home buyer demand is at near record heights and home seller supply...