The Victoria Real Estate Board said 704 properties were sold last month, a 25 per cent increase from the 565 sold in the same month last year. The benchmark price for a single-family home rose seven per cent to $515,900 over the same period.
“While September often signals the re-start of the market after the traditional summer slowdown in sales activity, our market remained strong right through the summer and September,” board president Guy Crozier said in a statement. “This September is different than past years. Our busiest month last year was in May, and 714 properties sold. That’s only 10 more transactions than we saw in September this year. The question now is — will we see the normal winter lull in sales and listings or will the market continue at this pace?”
There were 3,478 active listings for sale on the Multiple Listing Service at the end of September — 18 per cent fewer than the 4,253 active listings in September 2014.
“We certainly have less inventory in the market than we saw at this time last year,” said Crozier. “Though higher sales have contributed to a reduction in the available inventory, with almost 1,000 new listings entering the market in September, there is still a continual supply of new inventory for those folks who hope to make a move.”
