How to Read the Tri Cities Real Estate Market -“How is the market right now?”

One of the questions I get asked most often is:

“How is the market right now?”

It is a fair question, but there is rarely one simple answer.

The real estate market can look completely different depending on whether you are buying a detached home in Coquitlam, a townhouse in Port Moody, or a condo in Port Coquitlam.

Instead of focusing only on headlines, I encourage my clients to look at a few simple indicators that tell us what is actually happening.

Start With Supply and Demand

One of the best indicators is the sales to active listings ratio.

Simply put, it compares how many homes are selling with how many homes are currently available.

When the ratio is lower, buyers generally have more choice and negotiating power.

When the ratio is higher, sellers generally have more leverage because buyers are competing over fewer available properties.

As a general guide, a ratio below about 12 percent tends to favour buyers, while a ratio above about 20 percent tends to favour sellers.

The important part is looking at the right market.

A detached home in Coquitlam may be experiencing completely different conditions than a townhouse in Port Moody during the exact same month.

You can follow the latest local market updates on my Market Reports page.

Do Not Focus Only on the Benchmark Price

You will often hear about the MLS Home Price Index benchmark price in the news.

It is useful for understanding whether values are generally moving up or down, but it does not tell you what your specific property is worth.

Real estate is extremely local.

Two homes a few streets apart can sell for very different prices because of lot size, renovations, location, school catchment, views, condition, development potential and how well the property was marketed.

The benchmark gives us context.

Recent comparable sales tell us much more.

Pay Attention to How Quickly Homes Are Selling

Price is important, but pace tells us a lot too.

If homes are selling quickly and new listings are being absorbed almost immediately, buyer demand is usually strong.

If properties are sitting for several weeks or months and sellers are reducing their prices, buyers usually have more negotiating room.

Days on market and the amount of available inventory can sometimes tell us where the market is heading before prices begin to move.

The Tri Cities Can Behave Differently From the Broader Market

Greater Vancouver statistics are useful, but they do not always tell the whole story in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra.

There are local factors that can affect property values and buyer demand here differently from the broader market.

Transit

Access to SkyTrain continues to influence buyer demand throughout Coquitlam and Port Moody.

Neighbourhoods near stations such as Burquitlam, Moody Centre, Inlet Centre and Coquitlam Central continue to attract buyers who want convenient access to Vancouver while living outside the city.

Changing Density

Provincial housing legislation is also affecting how certain properties are valued.

Small Scale Multi Unit Housing rules mean many residential lots now have greater redevelopment potential than they did only a few years ago.

Separate Transit Oriented Area rules have also increased density potential around designated SkyTrain stations.

That does not mean every property is suddenly a development site.

Lot size, location, zoning and other requirements all factor in. Buyers and sellers should understand what is actually permitted on a property before assigning value to its development potential.

The local municipality is the best place to confirm what may be possible on a specific property.

Land Still Matters

The Tri Cities have many established neighbourhoods with larger residential lots.

That attracts families looking for long term homes as well as builders and developers looking for redevelopment opportunities.

Those two groups can sometimes place very different values on the exact same property.

What Buyers Should Watch

If inventory is increasing and homes are taking longer to sell, buyers can usually afford to be more patient.

There may be opportunities to negotiate on price, dates, conditions or other terms.

When inventory becomes tight and good homes begin selling quickly, buyers need to be prepared to act when the right property appears.

That does not mean overpaying.

It means understanding the market before writing the offer.

My Buyer’s Guide walks through the process in more detail.

What Sellers Should Watch

For sellers, pricing matters in every market, but it becomes especially important when buyers have lots of choice.

What a neighbour is asking is not necessarily what the market is willing to pay.

Recent comparable sales, competing listings and buyer activity give us a much clearer picture of where a property should be positioned.

The first few weeks of a listing are usually when a property receives the most attention, so getting the pricing and marketing right from the beginning can make a significant difference.

If you are weighing whether now is the right time to sell, a home evaluation is a good place to start.

The Bottom Line

There is no single Tri Cities real estate market.

There are dozens of smaller markets operating at the same time.

A condo in Port Moody, a townhouse in Burke Mountain and a detached home in Central Coquitlam can all be experiencing completely different conditions.

The goal is not to predict exactly where prices will be six months from now.

The goal is to understand the market you are buying or selling in today.

That means looking at the neighbourhood, property type, price range, competing listings and recent sales around the individual property.

If you would like to know what the numbers are saying in your neighbourhood, or you are considering buying or selling in the Tri Cities, reach out anytime.

Colin Colpitts PREC
Apex Real Estate Group
First Class Service. Always.