Tyler Gump

November 2008 Real Estate Market Report

November reductions in home sales and prices have helped improve affordability in Greater Vancouver. However, November also saw a corresponding decrease in the number of new homes coming onto the market.

In its most recent statistics release, the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver declined 69.7 per cent in November 2008 to 874 from the 2,883 sales recorded in November 2007.

Residential benchmark prices, as calculated by the MLSLink Housing Price Index®, declined 12.8 per cent between May and November 2008, amounting to an 8.3 per cent year-to-date price reduction for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver between November 2007 and 2008. In May 2008, the overall residential benchmark price was $568,411, compared to $495,704 in November 2008.

"Times of turmoil, from which we always emerge, offer excellent opportunities to buy quality real estate," says REBGV president, Dave Watt."For those whose personal finances allow them to get involved, there are opportunities in today's housing market that have not been seen in many years.

"The local real estate market is not immune to the current economic challenges globally; however, Canada's disciplined lending structure has kept the mortgage landscape steady in these uncertain times."

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties declined 10.8 per cent to 3,012 in November 2008 compared to November 2007, when 3,377 new units were listed. Active listings in November declined 4.7 per cent to 18,348 from the 19,257 active listings in Greater Vancouver in October 2008.

Sales of detached properties in November 2008 declined 69.8 per cent to 322 from the 1,067 units sold during the same period in 2007. The benchmark price for detached properties declined 8.6 per cent from November 2007 to $666,525. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for a detached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 13.6 per cent.

Sales of apartment properties declined 67.9 per cent last month to 410 compared to 1,276 sales in November 2007. The benchmark price of an apartment property declined 8.6 per cent from November 2007 to $342,315. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for an apartment property in Greater Vancouver has declined 12.2 per cent.

Attached property sales in November 2008 decreased 73.7 per cent to 142, compared with the 540 sales in November 2007. The benchmark price of an attached unit declined 6.4 per cent between November 2007 and 2008 to $426,287. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for an attached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 11 per cent.

For more information on the Vancouver Real Estate Market please contact Tyler Gump with TRG Realty at tyler@thegumpgroup.com or visit www.thegumpgroup.com

How Bad IS The Economy... Really???

Every time I turn on the news the world is coming to an end, every time I look in the news papers it just keeps getting worse & worse. ‘Why is this?’ many ask, well its simple – BLOOD SELLS!!!! Splatter the worst news possible across the front of the papers and you will be guaranteed to make money. It’s like a car crash – you can’t help but look as you drive by.

The Vancouver Sun headline on October 24^th, 2008 read: “Housing may dip until 2010”. It then goes on to show some stats about how our Real Estate market will drop for another 2 years. Potential home Buyers & Sellers read this news and then hold off their spending. All the media is doing is striking fear into the already damaged hearts of Canadians. It’s like getting kicked when you are already down.

Is consumer confidence really at an all time low? Are Canadians really holding off spending any money? Well of course they are – the media told them to. When was the last time you saw a news paper article telling Home Buyers that this is the best market we have seen in years to buy a home, that first time home Buyers can finally afford to get into the market? You probably haven’t. Why, because it won’t sell many papers, or get you watching the evening news. The media is not about bringing news to Canadians, it’s a business, and they have to make money. In this down economy with thousands of people getting laid off each month do you hear anything about a news anchor getting their pay cut, or about a news paper editor getting laid off – no, of course not – the media is doing very well - at the expense of many Canadian families.

The government is spending billions of dollars to help spark some spending and consumer confidence again, well why not just give people a bit good news and some hope. The media is to blame as much as anybody for this falling economy, well why not have them do their part to help recover it. A positive story every now and then could go a long way to help turn this around.

The economy and Real Estate specifically goes through cycles every 5-7 years, so this is nothing new, it shouldn’t be allowed to dictate how we live our lives. People are throwing the “R” word around quite a bit lately, but as far as I’m concerned if we do fall into a Recession I for one will chose not to take part in it and continue to spend my money regardless.

Please join your hosts: Dave Bruynesteyn of INVIS, Tyler Gump of TRG Realty and Kash Abtin of RE/MAX Masters in the Program Room of the beautiful new Lynn Valley Public Library. Your evening is guaranteed to be a fun and very informative one. A few of the evening’s hot topics will include mortgage information, the reality of today’s market, as well as in-depth information on purchasing a home . All of these topics are brought to you by leading professionals in their specified industries. The final forty-five minutes of the evening has been set aside to answer your valued questions.

Date: Wednesday November 12th 2008

Time: 6:45pm to 8:45pm

Location: 1277 Lynn Valley Road, North Vancouver, B.C.

Price: Free of charge for all!

Please email your name, phone number and guest information to deb@thegumpgroup.com. Space is limited so please make certain you get your name on the list right away.

Residential housing price decline

creates buying opportunities

Housing price reductions across Greater Vancouver over the last six months have eliminated price gains witnessed in the first quarter of 2008.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential benchmark prices, as calculated by the MLSLink Housing Price Index®, declined 8.8 per cent between May and October 2008, resulting in a 3.9 per cent year-to-date price reduction for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver between Octobers 2007 and 2008. In May 2008, the overall residential benchmark price was $568,411, compared to $518,668 in October 2008.

“Home sales are not keeping pace with the positive economic conditions in BC,” said REBGV president, Dave Watt. “That’s a direct result of a loss of consumer confidence in the overall market. Accordingly, today’s housing market is characterized by moderating home prices and wide selection. It’s definitely a buyer’s market.”

Residential property sales in Greater Vancouver declined 55 per cent in October 2008 to 1,364 from the 3,028 sales recorded in October 2007.

Active listings totalled 19,257 in October 2008, a three per cent decline from the 19,852 active listings reported in September 2008. New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties increased one per cent to 4,867 in October 2008 compared to October 2007, when 4,819 new units were listed.

Sales of detached properties in October 2008 declined 56.5 per cent to 493 from the 1,133 sales recorded during the same period in 2007. The benchmark price for detached properties declined 4.7 per cent from October 2007 to $695,962. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for a detached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 9.8 per cent.

Sales of apartment properties in October 2008 declined 52.7 per cent to 647, compared to 1,368 sales in October 2007. The benchmark price of an apartment property declined 3.5 per cent from October 2007 to $358,359. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for an apartment property in Greater Vancouver has declined eight per cent.

Attached property sales in October 2008 are down 57.5 per cent to 224, compared with the 527 sales in October 2007. The benchmark price of an attached unit declined 1.4 per cent in Greater Vancouver between October 2007 and 2008 to $448,152. Since May 2008, the benchmark price for an attached property in Greater Vancouver has declined 6.4 per cent.

For more information on Vancouver's Real Estate Market please contact Tyler Gump with TRG Realty at tyler@thegumpgroup.com or visit www.thegumpgroup.com or www.vancouverbesthomes.com.

Thinking of selling your home?

In this changing market it is more important than ever to have a leading industry professional give you an accurate home evaluation. With so much competition out there these days price alone won’t sell your home, you need to couple that with the very best marketing in order to expose your home to the highest amount of active buyers.

Tyler Gump uses the latest marketing techniques combined with years of experience and success in order to get your home sold in the least amount of time for the most amount of money.

Tyler Gump specialises in Downtown Vancouver condo’s and is up to date on all aspects of the market. Let Tyler Gump and The Gump Group’s Database of over 1000 contacts (including other realtors, past clients & active Buyers) work for you. All new listings get sent to over 1000 contacts in both email & print form.

Call or email Tyler Gump today to have Tyler give you a complementary home market evaluation and marketing presentation and begin your Real Estate journey.

You can reach Tyler Gump at tyler@thegumpgroup.com, or call 778-859-2248, or visit www.thegumpgroup.com or www.vancouverbesthomes.com.