Langley saw big increases in sales in every category of housing in January, as the unusual year for real estate lasted right through Christmas.
Last month, statistics from the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) showed that houses, townhouses, and condos all sold well above the levels they saw in January of 2020.
Langley saw 69 single family homes sell, up 40.8 per cent from the 49 that sold a year earlier.
There were 100 sales of townhouses, up 112.8 per cent from 47 in the same month last year, and 99 condos changed hands, up 115.2 per cent from the 46 sales a year before.
Prices were also generally on the rise for all categories of homes in Langley.
The benchmark price of a single family home in Langley was $1,163,100, up 16.8 per cent from the same month a year ago.
Townhouses rose 6.8 per cent to $593,200, while condos were $406,100, up 5.1 er cent.
The surprising rise in prices and strong sales began in the middle of the pandemic. After a few months of near-shutdown around late March and April, sales picked up and stayed historically high right through the winter.
“Lending rates are the lowest they’ve ever been, your housing dollar goes further in the Fraser Valley and we’ve seen a societal shift in the last year in how people value their homes,” said Chris Shields, president of the FVREB. “People are asking us to find them more space.”
A lack of supply is the main challenge, Shields said.
More housing did come up for sale during the winter, he noted.
In Langley, active listings for single-family homes were down compared to last year. There were 136 single family homes for sale in January, compared to 215 a year earlier.
However, there were 154 townhouses on the market compared to 125 a year ago, and 298 condos listed for sale, up from 278.
In addition, construction has been booming through the entire pandemic, as it was never shut down in B.C.
Mayor Jack Froese noted that building permits and development permits have been filed with the Township at a high level.
There are currently hundreds of units of condos and townhouses under construction in the Township. Many of the condo projects started before the pandemic, and are slated for occupancy sometime next year.