The Vancouver condo market continues to experience very weak sales numbers. February sales fell 41% year-over-year and were the lowest for the month since 2001. An eighteen year low in condo sales, particularly considering the growth in supply and population is really something to behold. This weakness has ultimately debunked the once widespread belief that condos would not be impacted by a housing market correction which at first appeared to be isolated to luxury detached homes.
Condo inventory increased 83% year-over-year and remains low in a historical context. However, due to the significant weakness in sales, the months of inventory sits at 6.4 which is indicative of favouring buyers. New listings were up 5.8% from last year but are relatively normal from a historical context. This suggests sellers not panicking to list and conditions remain orderly. However, with a nearly 40,000 units under construction inventory is likely to continue to outpace sales and should place further downwards pressure on prices.
The official home price index notes Vancouver condo prices have dipped 5.1% year-over-year. While the average price per square foot shows an 8.6% decline. Again, this number can vary depending on the metric used but it is safe to say condo prices have slipped about 10-12% from peak.
