Tri-Cities real estate prices rebounding to pandemic heights

Tri-Cities real estate prices are quickly climbing back up to levels not seen since the pandemic peaks, according to the monthly stats published by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV).

Coquitlam apartments are the first housing type in the Tri-Cities to have prices break out of the declines which followed interest rate hikes initiated by the Bank of Canada in March 2022.

Benchmark prices for all housing types in Metro Vancouver increased in June as demand continues to outweigh limited inventory, according to the REBGV.

But spikes in apartment prices were particularly pronounced regionally.

“The market continues to outperform expectations across all segments, but the apartment segment showed the most relative strength in June,” said Andrew Lis, REBGV’s director of economics and data analytics. “The benchmark price of apartment homes is almost cresting the peak reached in 2022, while sales of apartments are now above the region’s ten-year seasonal average.

“This uniquely positions the apartment segment relative to the attached and detached segments where sales remained below the ten-year seasonal averages.”

Regional prices have increased over the last seven consecutive months.

Over the last six months, average prices across all housing types have increased 8 percent in Coquitlam, 9.1 percent in Port Coquitlam, and 5.9 percent in Port Moody.

Port Coquitlam townhomes saw the biggest increases in June at 3.6 percent, a $33,200 bump in one month; the average unit now costs $962,100.

The REBGV counted 2,988 residential sales last month, a 21 percent increase from June 2022, but 8.6 percent below the 10-year seasonal average.

There were 5,348 new listings last month, a 1.3 percent increase compared to last year, but 3.1 percent below the 10-year seasonal average.

Downward pressure on pricing occurs when the sales-to-active listing ratio dips below 12 percent for a sustained period, while price increases occur then the ratio is above 20 percent, according to the REBGV.

Regionally, the sales-to-active listings ratio for June was 31.4 percent across all property types: 20.9 percent for single-family homes, 38.5 percent for townhomes, and 39.4 percent for apartments.

“Despite elevated borrowing costs, there continues to be too little resale inventory available relative to the pool of buyers in Metro Vancouver. This is the fundamental reason we continue to see prices increase month over month across all segments,” Lis said. 

In the Tri-Cities, there were 452 residential sales, with 715 new properties listed. 

The REBGV is calling on the province to adjust the $525,000 threshold exempting first-time home buyers from the property transfer tax.

Lis said this simple policy adjustment would better reflect the price of entry-level homes in the region, and help more first-time buyers afford a home.

Coquitlam	Benchmark price	1 month change	3 month change	6 month change	1 year change
Single-family	$1,787,000	1.8%	4.2%	6.9%	-3.1%
Townhomes	$1,074,600	1.5%	5.8%	9.8%	-1.1%
Apartments	$737,500	1.9%	5.1%	7.3%	0.6%

Port Coquitlam	Benchmark price	1 month change	3 month change	6 month change	1 year change
Single-family	$1,418,300	1.9%	7.7%	11.1%	-0.7%
Townhomes	$962,100	3.6%	8.0%	10.8%	-1.7%
Apartments	$630,200	0.7%	2.6%	5.5%	-2.4%

Port Moody	Benchmark price	1 month change	3 month change	6 month change	1 year change
Single-family	$2,035,300	1.4%	2.4%	4.6%	-7.1%
Townhomes	$1,033,100	-0.8%	3.3%	5.8%	-6.5%
Apartments	$728,000	1.6%	3.8%	7.2%	-2.4%