VANCOUVER—The average sale price of homes is down nationwide, according to the latest data from the Canadian Real Estate Association, and the number of homes bought and sold has dropped significantly from last year.

Released July 16, the CREA’s data shows that from May to June, the number of home sales rose by about 4 per cent, but the number of sales is down by nearly 11 per cent compared to last June. The average sale price has also dropped by 1.3 per cent.

Ian Watt, of Sotheby’s International Realty, said it’s important to consider that even if the number of home sales has risen over the past couple of months, doesn’t mean that the market is getting stronger.

In Vancouver, the market is cooling off, and we’re seeing a price correction, Watt said.

“Definitely in Vancouver everything is down. The only thing that is up are the listing counts,” he said. “The amount of transactions are down, the prices are down and it stays on the market longer.”

The decrease in price and sales means that more people are able to buy, Watt said.

In Vancouver, he said, people that were sidelined by high prices are “starting to come to the table again, because prices are 10 per cent cheaper.” No longer are buyers afraid of competing against multiple other offers, Watt added.

According to the CREA news release, the number of sales marked a five-year low and was almost 7 per cent below the 10-year average for the month of June, with the Lower Mainland of British Columbia leading the way in low sales numbers.

Read more about: