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The extra money was a factor in allowing Finance Minister Carole James to eek out a $301 million surplus in the year-end financial figures on a $51.7 billion budget.

But James acknowledged a softening housing market, as well as the NDP’s planned speculation tax, was driving down sales, prices and the property transfer tax revenue that the province has relied upon in the past.

“We want the market to moderate, we’ve been very clear about that,” she said. “We think that’s important not only for families and affordability but for our economy.

“Do I expect that there may be some change in the money that’s coming in? Yes I do.”

New figures on the slowdown will be released in September as part of the quarterly update to the current year’s 2018/19 budget.

Home sales in Metro Vancouver in July were at their lowest level in 18 years, and some realtors believe a significant decline in prices is quietly occurring in the market.

“Obviously we’re coming off the boil from the housing real estate boom,” said Jock Finlayson, executive vice-president for the Business Council of B.C.

“That’s clearly an area where the slowdown is very much in evidence in the Lower Mainland, and to some extent in the province, in sales activity. It’s going to pinch the government’s revenues for sure. Some of that I think they factored in their budget in February. The question is whether what’s happening now is a bigger downtown than what was predicted in the budget.”