Declining Home sales hit hard in Vancouver and Calgary

Dec. 3, 2010 - PRLog -- Declining Home sales hit hard in Vancouver and Calgary

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Calgary's real estate market has apparently hit the brakes after years on the rise, with some realtors saying it hasn't been this bad in over a decade.

Statistics released from the Calgary Real Estate Board  show sales of single family homes were down 19% in November from a year ago. Condominium sales were off 38% from a year ago.

Prices are also falling. The average sale price of a single family home in Calgary in November was $455,460, a 2% jump from October but a 2% drop from a year ago. Condominium prices are down 3% from a year ago to an average of $287,793.

“The second half of 2010 has proven to be tougher than expected,” said Navtaj Chandhoke, founder of Professional Real Estate Investors Group (PREIG) Canada."Canadian fixed-rate mortgages spiked upward in the spring, but have since seen a steady decline, helping increase affordability for home buyers this year."

Sales also continue to slump in Vancouver, Canada’s most expensive city for housing. November sales were off 18.6% from a year ago. Prices are up with the benchmark price for all residential properties $580,080, a 4.1% increase from a year ago.

However, the cost of home ownership in British Columbia remained high following increases that began in the first quarter of 2009.A detached bungalow in B.C. ate up 59 per cent of pre-tax income, while two-storey homes ate up 67.5 per cent of income and condos required 32.9 per cent of pre-tax income – all above the national average.

Canada's largest bank is predicting a period of stability in the housing market next year as rising mortgage rates are offset by improvements in the job market and household income.

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Navtaj Chandhoke is a Canadian-based real estate investor, speaker, author, educator and the founder of World Wealth Builders, leading RE investors education,mentoring, support and network of over 4545+ Canadian investors.
www.WorldWealthBuilders.com