I hope you’ve had a great month and are enjoying these long June days!
Whistler had 47 sales in May, which is above the 5-year average (2019-2023) of 43 sales in May. This may be a sign that there’s more confidence returning to the marketplace. In the same breathe, there’s likely market distortions related to people in the Lower Mainland taking profits and redistributing their property investments in advance of the changes to the capital gains inclusion rate on June 25th. Of these May sales in Whistler, 7 went for the asking price and 40 went for under the asking price.
In Squamish, there were 44 sales in May, which is just below the 5-year sales average of 50 sales in May. Of these sales, 8 went for over the asking price, 5 went for asking, and 31 went for under the asking price.
The big news event of the month was that the Bank of Canada (BoC) finally cut interest rates by 0.25%, down to 4.75%. This isn’t going to affect affordability in a material way, but it does send the signal that the BoC is aware that it’s time to start easing monetary policy. Most economic indicators in Canada provide reason to believe the BoC should have a clear path to at least the 4% mark, however the US economy continues to show surprising strength and the Fed is sitting on it’s hands. As discussed previously, there’s a limit to how much interest rates can diverge between Canada and the US if we don’t want to tank the CAD. A clear path isn’t a sure thing, even despite encouraging signs that the almighty American consumer is reaching the bottom of the barrel.
Somewhat surprisingly, prices have generally been holding steady and have been back on an upward trajectory in the Greater Vancouver area, Squamish and Whistler since January 2024 (see graph). However, the story of prices is more nuanced than shown in this graph, please reach out with specific questions.
On June 18th, Squamish Council will be considering the bylaw that will officially transition single family, duplex, and triplex-zoned lots into one new zoning designation called R-1. This will bring Squamish’s zoning bylaws into alignment with the density requirements mandated by the provincial government, and will allow a 4-plex plus a rental unit on R-1 properties. The draft zoning was linked in my April newsletter, here it is again . Of note, the District of Squamish is excluding a couple large areas of Squamish from the zoning changes, namely all of Brackendale and University Heights (see map below).
Whistler Council released their revised bylaw covering the new higher-density zoning in early June, linked here . Council adopted this zoning on June 11th and it is now in effect.
All in all, both markets are quite balanced right now. Sellers can do what they want to do (sell) and buyers can do what they want to do (buy with choice). Against the backdrop of the highest interest rates seen in over 20 years and major global geopolitical issues, our markets have demonstrated remarkable resilience. Property in this region has never looked like a better investment.
~
Lindsay
* If you’re curious about a property, don’t hesitate to contact me and I’ll take you for a tour.
* Thinking of selling? I’ll provide an assessment of market value and make a plan to get you the highest possible sale price in today’s market.
604-612-1484
lindsay@lindsaymcivorrealestate.com
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