B.C. real estate: pandemic drives higher price increases in Fraser Valley, Chilliwack compared to Greater Vancouver
Real-estate markets that offer pandemic-era buyers bigger and more affordable homes compared to Greater Vancouver are doing well.
The Fraser Valley and Chilliwack regions have posted year-over-year increases in average prices in November 2020 at rates higher than Greater Vancouver.
This appears to validate the narrative that preferences have shifted to more spacious properties because of COVID-19.
It also seems to confirm that a lot of buyers are moving away from densely populated urban centres to suburban or more rural locations.
A new report by the B.C. Real Estate Association (BCREA) indicates that average home prices in Greater Vancouver grew 8.4 percent in November compared to the same month in 2019.
Last month, the average price in the region came to $1,084,001.
In the Fraser Valley, the year-over-year increase in average home prices was 24 percent in November 2020, or tripled that in Greater Vancouver.
Last month, the average price of a home in the Fraser Valley totalled $908,879.
Over at the Chilliwack area, the average price of a home in November 2020 increased 18.1 percent compared to the same month last year.
The number represents more than double the rate of increase in Greater Vancouver.
This also meant that the average price of a home in the Chilliwack region rose to $602,079.
In its report Monday (December 14), the BCREA stated that the province saw its strongest November real-estate market on record.
A total of 9,416 homes sold in November 2020, an increase of 42.1 percent from November 2019.
The average residential price in B.C. set a record of $816,074, according to the BCREA.
The average price represents a 9.3 percent increase from $746,310 in the previous year.
Information obtained from The Georgia Straight and Carlito Pablo.