Vancouver, BC – June 6, 2012. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) released its 2012 Second Quarter Housing Forecast today.

BC Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) residential sales are forecast to edge down 2.2 per cent to 74,800 units this year, before increasing 4.9 per cent to 78,500 units in 2013. Since 2009, annual home sales in the province have hovered in the 74,000 to 78,000 unit range. A record 106,300 MLS® residential sales were recorded in 2005.

"Despite a sizable increase in consumer demand in Kamloops, the Okanagan and the North, some moderation in the Metro Vancouver region will pull BC home sales lower this year,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. “Persistently low mortgage interest rates are expected to continue to underpin home sales and affordability in the province."  

"An increase in the proportion of home sales in the Interior combined with fewer luxury sales in Vancouver will cause the annual average price in BC to decline nearly 4 per cent this year,” added Muir. The average MLS® residential price in the province is forecast to dip 3.9 per cent to $539,400 this year, and increase 1.4 per cent to $547,000 in 2013.

To view the full BCREA Housing Forecast, click here.