A hot favourite in the Canadian real estate market growth predictions for the last few years, Surrey BC seems to be on track in terms of the growth and demand for its real estate, even in the first four months of 2018. With the 5th highest turnover in Greater Vancouver, Surrey is also ranks among the top 10 cities with the fastest selling homes as on March 2018. It is very much a seller’s market, with the average selling to price ratio maintaining at 100%. The growing population in the region, coupled with its diverse economy seems to poise the city’s real estate to show continued growth in the times to come.
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Surrey has not only improved its average turnover period vis a vis other cities, but against its own statistics last year, with homes now spending an average of only 16 days on the market before changing hands, against an average of 20 days in March 2017. While the average price of the sold homes saw a steep rise from $710,000 in December 2017 to $770,000 in Feb 2018, we observe a correctional dip from Feb to March , dipping from $770,000 to $740,000, ranking it as the 14th most expensive city in the Greater Vancouver area.
The rise of the Surrey condos
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One trend standing out over the last one year is the Surrey condos for sale in the city, with their average price appreciating from $316,000 in 2017 to a steep rise at $423,000 in 2018, a price percentage growth of 34% year over year. Not only that, the available condos are being snapped up even quicker than before – spending a 13% lesser time on the market before being bought. This is a definite indication that despite the rise in the prices, the demand for Surrey condos hasn’t cooled and is still going strong. Surrey condos have continued to outpace all other property types, mainly because of the rising affordability constraints within these markets. This steep rise in prices, coupled with the quicker turnover period indicate a shortage of listings in the Surrey condo market, with the demand outpacing the supply.
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Looking at the break up of the sales by property type, we see around 40% of sale has been for detached homes (with a 4% price increase from last year), 35% being townhouses (a 19% price growth) and the remaining 25% of properties sold being condos, with their prices rising the the most at a steep 34% from the same time in 2017. Also looking at the individual sale to list ratios, we see that the condos seem to be enjoying a much higher demand at 103%, up 3% from last year, with the detached homes and townhouses staying stagnant in terms of the sale to list ratio.
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The rise in the demand for condos vis a vis townhouses and detached homes could indicate a lifestyle shift as well – such as the residents with children looking for more affordable and manageable options to own real estate, something that attached homes offer, in contrast to detached homes.
Whalley homes touching new heights- Growing prices and demand
If we zoom into the Whalley real estate market, we see a very promising trend, with a steep increase in the prices over the last six months, rising from $340,000 in April 2017 to $420,000 in March 2018. Not only that, the turnaround time for sale has become much faster, with the no. of days spent on the market slashing by half, from an average of around 30 days in 2017, to being bought within 14 days of being listed.
Whalley condos – In hot demand
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Looking at the trend over the past year, we can safely say that the Whalley real estate market is all about the condos, with almost 80% of all Whalley property sales being condominium sales, with detached homes and townhouses making up for the remaining 20% of the sales. With a neat 103% sale to listing ratio, this definitely is a seller’s market, with buyers paying more than the listing price to purchase the properties.
Looking at the price increase by property type, the detached homes seem to be lagging far behind in terms of price growth, with a year on year growth of a mere 9%, while the condos and townhouses have both clocked a rise of around 37% from 2017, a trend definitely pointing the population’s property preferences towards Whalley condos in 2018. With the growing population, young families with children preferring to go for affordable property options, Condos seem to be the overwhelmingly preferred choice, with the one stop amenities provided in attached homes, as against detached properties, where all aspects of the amenities have to be managed by the residents.
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Looking ahead – Whalley’s City Centre Plan and the LRT
Looking ahead, Surrey has a futuristic vision for its development, by implementing the City Centre Plan in its most densely populated area – Whalley. An ambitious city development initiative approved by the Surrey city council in 2017, the initiative will execute a series of development initiatives that will turn Whalley into an easily accessible cultural, commercial and entertainment hub. Some of the plan’s key initiatives include the establishment of a Skytrain system, an LRT (Light Transit system) in the downtown Surrey city centre, in addition to development of roads designed to encourage safe cycling and walking, establishment of greenways, parks, boulevards and gardens, and much more.
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The city is also seeing an influx of jobs in the biomedical and bio-technology sector as well. The city’s intention on executing the City Centre plan should potentially encourage economic development in the Whalley area and the quality of life of its residents, while further boosting the real estate market in the area. With the LRT connecting the city to major town centres like the King George Boulevard, 72 Avenue, 82 Avenue and 104 Avenues. This will lead to smoother and more efficient mobility of Whalley’s growing population. In the light of a sustainable and stable transport system of an LRT system could also encourage the growth of high density residential development a well. The Whalley City Centre plan holds the potential to establish a downtown core city over the next few years with spaces for its population to live, work and play. revitalize urban neighborhoods, encouraging real estate developers to build along these newly accessible transit areas, attracting more residents to want to live around the LRT junctions for faster accessibility to transport. The city also plans to undertake major regional road network improvements over the next 10 years, to meet the rising transport and accessibility demand of the growing population. These plans seem to be a sound way to plan for the future growth of the city, and will ensure that the growth and development of the city is seamless, with the city well prepared to absorb the infrastructural and transport demands it will place upon it.
