The market sure went out with a fizzle in the last month of 2022. We continue to see the difference a year can make when comparing the market statistics from December 2021 to December 2022. Prices are lower than they were a year ago while days on the market have gone up double or more.
In looking at the market versus November and the last quarter of 2022, we see a more balanced story. The prices and days on market are fairly stable. We did see a bit of a drop in listings for the last month of 2022 compared to the same month last year.
It has been a bit of a challenge lately with the news surrounding the real estate market. This year is always compared to the year previous which has been an outlier in terms of statistics. It is very hard to get a handle on the overall condition of the market using outlier data. In looking at historical sales and listings from the past 5 years, it is easy to spot that 2020, 2021 and the first part of 2022 are not considered 'normal' for mid-Vancouver Island. We are currently statistically very similar to the markets we saw in 2018 and 2019.
In both years we experienced balanced markets much like the one we are currently in. There are a few factors set to put more pressure on the market as we head into 2023. New legislation around the Strata Property Act in BC and the Federal Foreign Buyer Ban will have some effect on the mid-Vancouver Island market. We should also start to see the fallout from the last interest rate increase as we move toward spring.