Greater Victoria real estate market slows and prices dip

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WATCH: The Greater Victoria real estate market appears to be showing signs of levelling out after several years of double-digit increases. The era of multiple offers may be coming to an end. And as Mary Griffin explains, some in the industry welcome the change.

Realtor Mike Boorman walked through the two-bedroom Oak Bay townhouse, describing the property, on Tuesday.

“As you can see, the property in the unit has been nicely updated throughout,” Boorman said.

It just came on the market Monday.

“They’ve spared no expense on kitchen upgrades, bathrooms, new countertops, cabinets, and new lighting throughout,” Boorman said.

And the open house drew a steady line of potential buyers and realtors.  The Goss’ are looking to downsize and recognize the market is different.

“They’ve come down, they’re listings are taking longer to sell. So yeah, it’s just not as robust as it was,” Goss said.

Boorman expects this unit to sell easily.

“A good response so far. We are hopeful that we’ll receive an offer before Christmas time. And my clients make some decisions and plans into the new year,” Boorman said.

Across Greater Victoria prices are softening.

According to the Victoria Real Estate Board, in 2017, a single family home sold for an average of $902,985.

Last month, that average price dipped to $851,481, that’s a drop of more than $51,000.

President Kyle Kerr said mortgage changes introduced by the federal government on Jan. 1 are having an impact.

“Demand has slowed down, and after two years of really strong growth, up over 40 per cent in the last two or three years, a little bit of a retraction is not necessarily a bad thing. Because it’s showing that the market is balanced, and there is some checks in there as well,” Kerr said.

What is not slowing down is the condo market.  Realtor Tony Zarsadias said the condo market is going strong. The average price of a unit increased $100,000 from November 2017 to November 2018.

“Despite the fact that we’re seeing more cranes than we’ve ever seen in Victoria. And most of those buildings that are going up are 80 to 95 per cent sold. So, there is not a lot of supply in the market,” Zarsadias said.

Back at the open house, there is more time in the market now, for everyone.

“I prefer a balanced market. You have more time to make the appropriate decision. And you are not rushing into the process,” Boorman said.

Mary GriffinMary Griffin

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