B.C. real estate: Is this becoming a ‘buyer’s market’?

If you’ve ever wanted to get into B.C.’s real estate market, now may be your chance.

According to the BC Real Estate Association (BCREA), some parts of the province are starting to become a “buyer’s market,” with predictions that sales are going to drop by almost 35 per cent in the coming quarter.

After that, the BCREA is forecasting an additional five per cent drop next year.

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“Mortgage rates have risen at a much faster rate and to a higher level than previously anticipated,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “Faced with a dramatic shift in the cost of borrowing, housing market activity is likely to fall well below normal over the next year.”

The association notes that weaker sales and an increase in inventory “have tipped” some regions, especially those in more expensive markets, “into buyers’ market territory.”

“Consequently, average MLS® home prices have come down from peak levels,” the BCREA added.

However, when it comes to prices, the association believes overall they will drop next year across the province, with each area expecting a decline of their own.

Meanwhile, given population growth and hunger from many to finally enter the market, the BCREA doesn’t think the downturn we’re currently seeing or will see in the short-term will be long-lived.

It says “there will be no shortage of demand for housing in the province.”