Inventory levels and total sales will be interesting to watch in the second half of the year.  Time will tell if the recent Bank of Canada rate drop will have the desired effect to stimulate a slow sales year to date.

At the end of July 2024, there were 3,348 active listings in the Victoria Real Estate Board’s Multiple Listing Service®, reflecting a 3.2% decrease from the previous month but a significant 38.4% increase compared to July 2023. This decrease in inventory from June is part of a seasonal trend but is being closely monitored due to its implications for market balance.

Chair Laurie Lidstone remarked on the stability of the market, noting that July’s sales figures were consistent with June’s performance, which was unexpected given the usual dip in activity during summer vacations. Lidstone also pointed out the impact of recent changes to the Residential Tenancy Act, which have introduced additional complexity and risk for transactions involving rental properties.

Regarding home prices, the MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) benchmark for single-family homes in the Victoria Core was $1,296,100 in July 2024, marking a 2% decrease from the same month in 2023 but a slight increase from June 2024’s value of $1,295,500. The benchmark value for condominiums in the Victoria Core was $567,800 in July 2024, down 0.6% from the previous year and slightly below the June 2024 value of $567,900.

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