Prospective homebuyers who stayed home in the darker days of winter and spring appear to have come out in July’s summer sun, pushing a boost in sales across the Lower Mainland.

For the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, July was the hottest month of the year so far, and the busiest July since 2009, the board says.

Sales cleared through the Multiple Listing Service reached 2,946 in July, the board reports. That’s a 40.4-percent increase compared to the 2,098 sales recorded in July 2012, and an 11.5-per-cent increase compared to the 2,642 sales in June 2013.

In the Fraser Valley, realtors cleared 1,456 sales through the MLS, a fiveper-cent increase from the same month a year ago and beating June’s sales results.

“Buoyancy during the summer is rare at the best of times,” said Ray Werger, president-elect of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, “and yet, I’ve just experienced the busiest July in my 20-plus years as a realtor.”

In Vancouver, it’s the same story.

“Demand has strengthened in our market in the last few months, which can, in part, be attributed to pent-up demand from the slowdown in sales activity we saw at the end of last year,” REBGV president Sandra Wyant said in a news release.

The boost in sales, however, doesn’t appear to have put much pressure on pricing.

In Metro Vancouver, the benchmark price for all homes in the board’s region was $601,900 in July, which is still 2.3 per cent below the benchmark price of this time last year, but an increase of 2.3 per cent over the last six months.

“Home prices continue to experience considerable stability with minimal fluctuation throughout much of this year,” Wyant said. “This stability in price brings greater certainty to the home buying and selling process.”

In the Fraser Valley, the benchmark price on a detached home was $551,000 in July, a tiny fraction below the $551,400 benchmark of July 2012.

“Year-over-year, prices are stable or down slightly, however the six-month trend is showing one-to two-per-cent increases for all property types, again underlying the return to an average or typical housing market,” Werger said.

Source: Vancouver Sun