Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver reports sales fell 43.5 per cent in September compared to same month last year

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — The bubble that’s been ballooning for years in Vancouver’s housing market is finally showing signs of bursting.

With the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver reporting sales fell 43.5 per cent in September compared to the same month last year, James Brander with UBC’s Sauder School of Business says it’s no surprise year-over-year sales have dropped more than 40 per cent.

He says there’s always ups and downs, but something had to give considering how hot the Vancouver market has been for many years.

“Sooner or later, you know, bubbles do burst. Certainly, my sense is that we have hit the peak. I’m not predicting we’re going to have a big decline, but I would expect relative stability instead of just prices continuing up,” Brander says.

“Vancouver was basically in a real estate boom. People were buying because they thought prices would keep going up. A lot of speculative purchasers and right now, they’re getting nervous,” he says, adding sales have also cooled down thanks to mortgage qualification rules now being more strict.

Al Krueger, a realtor with the 604 New Home Team, admits it is taking longer to sell a home. That’s backed up by the real estate board which found prices have dropped more than two per cent since September of last year.

“Each week there’s more product coming out. Should we buy something now or wait? Next week, they’ll be more affordable?” he says. “We’ve been having people take looks and people coming back for a second look, but the act of actually putting pen to paper, that is slower to take place.”