Mission house prices continued to increase in July, even as the regional real estate market cooled somewhat.
The price of an average home rose 2.8 per cent last month to $543,700, according to the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board. That figure is up an astounding 39.5 per cent – and nearly $150,000 – over the same period last year.
Townhome and apartment prices were also up substantially, by 4.1 per cent and 3.3 per cent respectively. While detached home values had increased more rapidly than attached units, the rate of increase in townhomes and apartment prices is regularly exceeding that of single-family houses.
Nevertheless, there are signs the market had started to cool even before the province instituted a 15 per cent tax on foreign home buyers in Metro Vancouver in late July.
For the first time in 2016, July didn’t set a monthly sales record for the region. Across the Fraser Valley, the number of sales was 10 per cent lower than that in July of 2015 and 31 per cent below the number seen in June.
“A slowing down in activity is expected during the summer. While it may seem drastic or alarming when compared to months prior, this easing off is welcome as we get further into the year – the pace of the market slows, and inventory has a chance to catch up,” said board president Charles Wiebe.