MARKET ACTIVITY GRAPHS

All graphs are copyright to the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board

This graph shows the relationship between the number of sales each month compared to the number of listings available.
In 1999 to 2001 we were still in a down market. Here you can see that it was clearly a buyer’s market. In this market prices are stable or declining.
In late 2001 the market turned and we moved to a balanced market and then into a seller’s market. The seller’s market prevailed for nearly 7 years. The high spikes in the last few years is caused by two factors working together. There are obviously more sales happening, but there are also fewer listings available as compared to the late 1990’s. Since the summer of 2007 we saw a change where inventory increased and the number of sales decreased. Eventually this went to the low extreme in the winter 08/09 where list to sell ratio dropped to 4%. We have now recovered toward a more balanced market.

This graph shows how the spikes in the last graph are realized. The top line is the number of listings available in each month. The middle line is the number of new listings coming onto the market each month. The bottom line is the number of sales each month.
A typical market runs on supply and demand. In the late 1990’s there was much supply and little demand (sales). Over the next 7 years supply steadily declined and demand steadily increased. This can only mean prices rise. In 2007 /2008 we saw the large increase in supply and the drop in demand. Prices began to slide. We are now in a balanced market with decent supply and reasonable demand.
The annual dips in the line are the drop off in activity over the Christmas season. December is our slowest month of the year.