British Columbia

Vancouver real estate sees hot August as house prices up 17% from last year

There was no summer slowdown for Metro Vancouver's housing market, as brisk sales and rising prices continue, especially for detached homes.

No summer slowdown for Metro Vancouver real estate, sales 28% above average for August

On Vancouver's West Side, the benchmark price for a single-family detached home was nearly $2.7 million, up 17.9 per cent in the past year. (Realtor.ca)

Metro Vancouver's sky-high real estate prices continued to rise in August, with much higher sales than normal for the summer month, according to the latest figures from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.

The benchmark price for a detached property in Metro Vancouver increased 17.5 per cent from the year before, to nearly $1.16 million.

In some neighbourhoods, prices rose even more sharply: East Vancouver, parts of Burnaby, Tsawwassen and Ladner all saw prices rise more than 20 per cent on single-family detached homes over the past year.

Overall, sales were 28 per cent higher than the ten-year average for August, according to the board.

"There was no summer lull in our market this year," said Darcy McLeod, board president, in a release. "[Buyers] are motivated, but they're competing for a smaller supply of homes for sale than is typical for this time of year."

The one part of the region that saw falling prices was Whistler, where the benchmark price dropped 0.5 per cent last month, and prices for apartments have fallen 21.6 per cent in the past five years.