A quick visit to Spain
At the end of October, we had the privilege of going to Mallorca for a global Engel and Völkers summit. Here, we were learning from our peers all over the world. We connected with agents from European countries (yes, even after Brexit, we still consider England as Europe;) South Africa, Saudi Arabia, and the States.
Connecting with people from our industry is always nice, as you always learn new things from your peers. However, the biggest "highlight" was that everyone noticed a decline in the real estate market. A decline stimulated by higher interest rates resulted in uncertainty in the economy. Bad economics are not a highlight, however, it confirmed that our real estate market is not an outlier to the rest of the world.
We wish you an amazing November!
All the best,
Erik, Kelsey, and Cathy
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As all of you know by now, we do love data. Data explains a lot of what is going on in the market; however, you cannot only look at a snapshot of the data to come to conclusions. Typically, marketers will use those snapshots to promote something positively or negatively. Here is a great example: the average sales price in the Comox Valley is up over 28% compared to October 2022. The average sales price in October 2022 was $717,192; meanwhile, it was $920,714 last month. What people don’t see in this snapshot of time is that if we look at the numbers in a twelve-month timeframe instead, the average sales price is down almost six percent from $893,900 to $840,623.
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Within the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board, 491 single-family dwellings entered the market this October, and 244 changed hands. In September 2022, 566 properties came to the market, and 244 changed hands. If we compare those numbers, there are 13.25% fewer listings in October vs the previous month, and the number of transactions remains the same. However, if we look at the trend of 2023 as a whole, 244 monthly transactions is still one of the slowest months this year.
The sell-to-list ratio in October 2023 was 49.69%, compared to 43.11% in October 2022. The numbers are higher than in September (the sell-to-list ratio was 44.63%); it is the third month in 2023 that the ratio was below 50%.
Let's look at sale prices. The average sale price in October was $823,713, vs $771,324 in 2022 - an increase of 6.79%. In September, the average sales price was $779,549. As mentioned in the introduction, from the first glimpse, it looks like the market is recovering nicely. However, the total sales volume from September to October was down - September came in at $207,360,050, and October, $200,985,926.
Luckily, the Bank of Canada (BoC) did not increase their interest rates, and we do see people becoming more optimistic about the market. We want to stress that this optimism is as thin as the first night of frost. (This might be a Dutch saying, so let me explain. We, as Dutch people love to ice skate, especially on our Dutch canals. Whenever the first night of frost happens, we are getting super optimistic, but often, there will not be enough nights of frost to actually skate).
The moral of our market update is that things are starting to look a little more optimistic. However, the picture that might be drawn by other outlets could be that the market is in full swing again. We would like to stress, that although we like to approach things from the bright side, we are not out of the woods yet.
As always, if you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us.
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What is your home worth?
Market Insights: Discover the current market value of your home, which can be crucial for informed decision-making about your real estate future
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A call away
If you want to chat with us about real estate, share your thoughts, or simply talk about the weather - we’re always happy to hear from you! Schedule a call today =)
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Curious?
We discussed a fair amount of data! Data is always tricky as you can approach it from different angles. Have your own look at it via our market dashboard.
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Do you want to own your own (Semi)-Custom home in the Comox Valley?!
Have you ever dreamed of building your own home? Don't wait any longer and make your dream a reality. We have access to several building lots in the Comox Valley that are being ready to be built on. Connect with us for more information.
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Friendly Reminder
We strive to build a business based on referrals. If you know anyone who is considering making a real estate move, keep us in mind =)
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