Housing prices in Burnaby, and other Metro Vancouver communities, are continuing to slowly drop after a scorching market in 2021 that saw record-setting levels.
In its monthly report, the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) says regional home sales have returned to typical seasonal levels mainly because of rising interest rates.
Residential home sales totalled 2,918 last month, a 31.6 per cent decrease from the 4,268 homes purchased in May 2021.
The May 2022 numbers also recorded a 9.7 per cent drop from the 3,232 homes sold in April this year.
"With interest rates rising, home buyers are taking more time to make their decisions in today’s housing market,” REBGV chair Daniel John said in a news release.
"Home buyers have been operating in a frenzied environment for much of the past two years. This spring is providing a calmer environment, with fewer multiple offer situations, which is allowing buyers to explore their housing options, understand the changing mortgage market, and do their due diligence."
In Burnaby, a single-family detached home continues to hover at a benchmark price of $2 million.
Burnaby East residences currently average more than $1.96 million — a modest 0.7 per cent drop last month from April 2022 — about $2.11 million in Burnaby North (-0.4 per cent) and $2.318 million in Burnaby South (-0.9 per cent).
"Upward pressure on home prices has begun to ease in the housing market over the last two months," John added.
"Where home prices go next will depend on housing supply. While we’re beginning to see modest increases in home listings, we still need housing supply totals to more than double to bring the market close to balanced territory."
Home appreciation increases in 2020
Burnaby homebuyers and owners, as well as Lower Mainland residents, can now see the current market value of any home thanks to a new online tool.
Properly, a real estate brokerage, announced on May 25 its program Instant Estimate had officially launched, a free tool that uses proprietary AI technology to provide the current market value of any home, not just ones that are for sale.
The company revealed which Burnaby neighbourhoods had the highest increase in appreciation during the pandemic by comparing the sold prices of homes in the Greater Vancouver region from July to December of 2020 (when real estate activity was most active that year) with their current Instant Estimate price.
Home appreciation is related to a house or investment property that increases in value over a certain period of time.
Burnaby is broken down as follows:
- Parkcrest - 46 per cent
- Burnaby Hospital - 41 per cent
- Burnaby Lake - 40 per cent
- Willingdon - 37 per cent
- Sperling-Duthie - 37 per cent
- The Crest - 36 per cent
- Capital Hill (Burnaby North) - 34 per cent
- Central (Burnaby North) - 29 per cent
- Sullivan Heights - 25 per cent
- Edmonds (Burnaby East) - 23 per cent
- Brentwood Park - 19 per cent
According to the data, the average value of a residence in Burnaby saw an increase of 29 per cent.
Burnaby an expensive city to rent in Canada: report
Burnaby is one of two B.C. cities are in the top six of Canada's most expensive places to rent a home.
According to its latest report, Rentals.ca says a one-bedroom suite averaged $1,883 in May 2022 and is the sixth-highest rate in the country.
That's a 15.24 per cent increase compared to one year ago, but a 3.88 per cent drop from April.
A two-bedroom in Burnaby was set at an average cost of $2,563 — a 5.39 per cent uptick compared to last month and 14.52 per cent from April 2021.
Cities with higher rent averages include Etobicke, Ont., Oakville, Ont., Burlington Ont. and Toronto, Ont.
The highest in the country is Vancouver, where a one-bedroom rental comes in at $2,334, an increase of 2.37 per cent from last month and 18.12 per cent from one year ago.
A two-bedroom suite in B.C.'s largest city also skyrocketed in price at $3,324 — a 6.47 per cent increase month-over-month and 23.71 per cent uptick compared to a year ago.
"Two and three-bedroom units are seeing higher growth rates than smaller suites as tenants continue their preference for larger suites as many employees continue to work from home," the report says.
"As central banks across the globe fight inflation by increasing interest rates, some demand will shift from the ownership market to the rental market.
"Secondly, sky-high gas prices may also boost demand for transit-friendly and walkable urban locations – the same properties hit hard during the pandemic when the benefits of dense neighborhoods close to downtown offices, restaurants and entertainment became less valuable."
