October’s Abbotsford Real Estate Stats

October real estate stats are out and they tell an interesting tale. The FVREB says “No sign of slowdown for the Fraser Valley….” Get the complete report by clicking here or you can follow this post to get my take and point of view.

This Chart is a look at the real estate market Stats for the month of October over the past 8 years. I’m not a statistician but I thought this could give us an interesting perspective of where we are in relation to other years. We will take a look at the three main areas of activity. Namely; Detached Housing, Townhouse’s and Apartment’s.

1. Detached Housing Highlights.

   1. Inventory levels are at very low levels.
   2. Currently less than a 3 month supply of houses.
   3. Sales to Active Listing Ratio is high at 39%. (Sellers Market)
   4. Sales are up 46% from one year ago

2. Townhouse Highlights

   1. Inventory levels have remained relatively constant compared to Detached and Apt.
   2. Currently 4 month supply.
   3. Sales to Active Listing Ratio is at an 8 year high of 24%. (Sellers Market)
   4. Sales are up 28% from one year ago

3. Apartment Highlights

   1. Inventory levels are down almost 200 units from the high in 2010.
   2. Currently a 4.5 month supply. A signifcant change from 2010 where there was over 8 months supply.
   3. Sales to Active Listing Ratio is currently at 22% (Sellers market)
   4. Sales are up 19% from one year ago.

We can interpret from these real estate stats the following

1. There will remain upward pressure on the price of Detached housing as long as inventory levels remain low and the demand remains high. People may hesitate to put their home on the market without being comfortable knowing they will find what they are looking for.
2. The townhouse market will continue to remain steady. A more in-depth analysis would also take into consideration the type of units these are. An example of this would be whether or not they are age restricted.
3. The apartment market would seem to be heading for a bit of a resurgance if the inventory levels continue to drop. After a number of years of poor performance, I believe we could begin to see a return to some appreciation in the value of some of the used apartment units with continued lowering of inventory. That would mean an apartment may make for a pretty good investment for your retirement portfolio given the right circumstances.

We often think of real estate as an investment and for most of us it is usually our single largest investment. This makes it important to understand what is affecting it. It is also a place where we call home. The place where memories are made. Relationships forged. So we can’t just look at it from a statistical point of view. But we need to be certain we are aware of what is happening so we can make informed decisions.

I hope this give you some insight into the real estate market conditions in Abbotsford. If you are interested in learning how they might affect your decisions regarding your property, please feel free to contact me at your convenience for “Friendly Service all the Time”