British Columbians opportunistic about real estate market - RBC survey

According to a RBC home ownership survey released on March 5^th, despite declining real estate prices British Columbians ranked among the most bullish Canadians in regards to residential real estate prospects. The survey showed that approximately 78% of British Columbians said it was a buyer's market for residential real estate, compared with 65% of Canadians overall. Among the homebuyer's surveyed:

27% said they would do so because their current home didn't meet their needs.
nearly 25% of respondents cited attractive housing prices as being an incentive for them to look for a home.
23% said they wanted to buy a bigger home.

Vancouver has experienced some of the largest price declines across Canada. Recent Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver statistics show that the average price of residential homes has fallen 14.2% year-over-year to $653,452. Prices of condominiums and other apartment properties have fallen 13.9% to $333.143.

However, despite the recession buying intentions in B.C. have not changed:

26% of respondents said they plan to buy a home in the next two years.
20% believe prices will be higher in a year's time.
more than 80% of British Columbians said buying a home was a good investment.
76% were planning to buy a detached home.
almost 85% of British Columbians planned on buying a resale home, compared with 74% of Canadians.

British Columbians were also seen to be amongst the most green as we are most likely to include environmental considerations as part of their buying decision. More than 90% wanted to buy an energy-efficient home and 72% wanting other environmentally friendly features.

To receive regular updates regarding current Vancouver real estate market conditions click here. For more information on buying or selling a home in Vancouver visit Vancouver Realtor Dean Wegman's website at www.deanwegman.com