Downtown Vancouver by JamesZ

“The MLS® HPI is a national collaboration intended to give the public a more reliable and comprehensive tool to understand home price trends across the country,” Rosario Setticasi, REBGV president, commented on the launch of the new MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI) replacing the MLSLink Housing Price Index, which had been used by Greater Vancouver and Fraser Valley REALTORS® since the mid 1990s.

The MLS® HPI benchmark price for all residential properties in the Greater Vancouver Area has experienced a growth of 5.7 per cent over the last year, climbing up to $660,600 since January 2011, and a slight 0.1 decrease compared to the previous month. The benchmark price for all residential properties in the Lower Mainland is $593,300 — less than 5 per cent more than in January 2011.

Last month’s new listings count was by far the highest January total in Greater Vancouver history since 1995. New listings for detached, attached, and apartment properties amounted to 5,756 — reaching a 19.9 per cent growth compared to January 2011, when new listings reached 4,801. This represents a vast 253.3 per cent increase compared to December 2011, which recorded merely 1,629 sales.

Residential property sales reached 1,577 on the Multiple Listing Service®, falling 4.9 per cent behind December’s 1,658. This represents a 13.3 per cent downturn compared to January 2010 sales, which reached 1,819.

• Detached property sales (659 units) experienced a 16.9 per cent decrease compared to January 2011 (793 units) and a 6.5 per cent decrease compared to January 2010 (705 units). The benchmark price increased 11.3 per cent from January 2011 to $1,034,700.

• Apartment property sales (657) decreased 7.9 per cent compared to January 2011 (713) and 26.3 per cent compared to January 2010 (891). The benchmark price increased by 2.4 per cent from January 2011 to $371,500.

• Attached property sales (261 units) experienced a 16.6 per cent decline compared to January 2011 (313 units), and a 20.2 per cent decrease compared to January 2010 (327 units). The benchmark price decreased by 0.5 per cent since January 2011 to $468,000.