The local real estate market continues to resemble a zany game of Monopoly.
Properties are being snapped up right, left and centre. Bidding wars continue to erupt and prices continue to rise, according to the latest numbers from the Chilliwack and District Real Estate Board (CADREB).
“I’ve honestly never seen anything like it,” CADREB president Andrew Verschuur said in a press release issued Wednesday.
February is usually a slower month for real estate sales, topping out around 200, but last month saw 533 properties sold. Forty-six of those fell in the $600,000-to-$650,000 range. There were 40 sales in the $800,000-to-$850,999 range, 39 properties went for more than $1-million and four surpassed the $2-million mark.
The average sale price for a single family detached home was $791,606, rising sharply from $762,066 in January and $733,515 in December.
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It’s gone up nearly $150,000 from February 2020, when the average sale price was $645,209.
The average price of the 108 townhouses sold last month was $544,706, and the average price of the 91 apartments sold was $289,276.
“The value of units sold in February reached over $361 million, compared to almost $103 million for the 190 sales that completed in February of 2020,” Verschuur noted.
Historically low inventory levels continue to fuel the surge. At the end of February, there were only 500 active listings on the market. Combine a lack of supply and low interest rates with heavy demand from buyers, and you get the bidding wars that local Realtors are seeing.
“Every sector of the local real estate market is experiencing unparalleled growth, from condos and apartments to detached homes, homes with acreage and vacant lots for new builds,” Verschuur said.
Verschuur said it’s a particularly good time to be downsizing.
“If you no longer need the big family home with the large yard and are looking at simplifying your life, there are buyers waiting,” he said. “Single family homes are in big demand right now, with buyers continuing to migrate from the more metropolitan areas.”
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