Vancouver Real Estate: Should I Buy Or Sell now?
Introduction
According to Demographia International Housing Affordability, Greater Vancouver has the second least affordable real estate market. In 2014, Vancouver’s median home price was 10.6 times the local median pre-tax household income. Therefore, buying or selling in this market requires lots of investigation and research. Deciding which sources to use is difficult considering many sources are not direct in letting individuals know when the best time for buying or selling is. Moreover, we need to take into account the purpose of buyers that can vary from investing to simple family need. Predicting major price fluctuations is difficult because there are many factors affecting the market including customer’s purchasing power, supply and demand, lending interest rates, population, decline in oil prices and Canadian dollar value. With time and careful consideration we were able to select some of the best sources we felt were the most efficient in helping one choose what to do when it comes to real estate in Vancouver.
This article mentions the home price appreciation trend in Greater Vancouver. The statistics show that the prices of Vancouver real estate have increased 5 to 10 percent since last year depending on their type (condo or single-family detached homes or others). There has also been increase in the number of properties for sale. Moreover, decrease in oil prices has caused economic difficulties for some Canadian provinces, forcing many people to move from Alberta to British Columbia. Continued influx of immigrants from overseas and low lending interest rates will be key drivers behind the Vancouver area’s housing market this year. Therefore, what we can conclude from this article is that buying at this time is the best option. This news article is accurate in presenting details and statistics and doesn’t show any bias towards a specific side of real estate market. The use of expert testimony supports the credibility of the details.
This article is a realtor’s analysis on Vancouver real estate market. Using reports and statistics, the article indicates how the residential property sales in Greater Vancouver have increased by 53.7 percent since last year. Likewise, new listings, sales-to-active-listings and most importantly real estates’ value have increased significantly comparing to last year. The author of this article is a realtor and obviously tries to attract both buyers and sellers by showing that the market is healthy and improving. He doesn’t state his opinion on whether to buy or sell, making the audience draw their own conclusion.
This news article discusses the effects of Bank of Canada’s decision of cutting the lending interest rates. Mortgage interest rate is an important factor affecting purchasing power of the Canadian buyers. This potential boost can increase the number of buyers and also hints that buying properties at this time is a good decision. This article has an informative purpose and doesn’t show any bias affecting the judgment of the author.
This article predicts that the price of Vancouver’s real estates will follow its increasing trend during the future years. The average price for new and existing detached properties has increased 175 percent since 2005 and this trend seems to be continuing. Low mortgage rates, limited land base and new residents moving to B.C. from overseas and other provinces all contribute to the housing boom. This news article involves lots of interviews with experts and economists and also individuals who have been involved in Vancouver’s real estate market. The source is reliable and current.
This article investigates the impact of decline in oil prices on Canada’s real estate market. Slowing of home price appreciation is predicted in Western Canadian cities including Vancouver. Decline in consumer confidence, caused by decreased purchasing power, is the main factor that slows real estate market. This also hints that slowed growth in the price of homes encourages many home owners to sell their properties, fearing that prices will drop significantly. At the same time, buyers can benefit from more affordable real estate prices for a short period of time. Royal LePage is a known, reliable provider of services to real estate brokerages in Canada. The statements are objectively discussed and supported by statistics.
This current article includes lots of statistics related to the ongoing trend in Greater Vancouver’s real estate market. Price gain in Vancouver housing market increased by 7.19 percent compared to last year and the national average sale price rose 9.4% on a year-over-year basis in March. This indicates the direction of home price appreciation in Greater Vancouver. The Canadian Real Estate Association represents 109,000 realtors across Canada and their data are reliable
Conclusion
Analyzing Vancouver real estate market and predicting its behavior is difficult because there are lots of factors involved in this sector. Moreover, there isn’t any article on the internet indicating if the best option is buying or selling because the market is dynamic and the needs of people vary. When investigating this topic, we also need to consider the buying power of buyers and the purpose of investors. Some people can pay the whole price of a property at once and therefore can buy at any time, but others must pay attention to the loan interest rates and decide when the best time to buy is.
Considering all of these possibilities, we conclude that the main factors affecting Vancouver Real Estate market are the season of the year (when one is buying or selling), purchasing power and customer confidence, lending interest rates, supply and demand, immigrants from overseas and value of Canadian Dollar. Increasing number of affluent immigrants from overseas, particularly China, and from other Canadian Provinces has always kept the demand for properties high. This has resulted in a continuous increase in price of Vancouver real estate over the past several years, making this city’s real estate the second least affordable in the world. Decline in oil prices and also Canadian dollar value has decreased the buying power of many Canadians, resulting in a temporary slower increase in property prices compared to previous years. However, this has a short term effect and considering other factors including increasing population and low lending interest rates will boost the acceleration of increase in Vancouver real estate price at its usual pace. Furthermore, spring season is one of the busiest real estate seasons in a year that attracts many competitors to the market resulting in more market opportunities.
Therefore, we should buy real estate in Vancouver rather than selling.
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