Sales have continued to slow during the summer after a fairly robust first half of 2010. Many experts agree that the rush to beat the HST made for a spike in sales before July 1, and many people that were considering entering the market did so earlier in the year. The summer of 2009 was an exceptional period of activity, and although sales in August of this year are only slightly more than half the number of sales from 2009, we are still seeing a 97% sale price to list price ratio.

Sales declined by 102 from July’s 527 to 425 sales this month. That difference is comparable to the change in last year’ July-August of 169sales ( 933-764), and is in keeping with the usual summer trends when many people are away on holidays.

The number of properties listed for sale on the Victoria Real Estate Boards MLS System® sat at 4,356 at the end of August 2010, up from 3509 available this month last year, but still below the 2008 levels of 4657. See how the Active Listing count has fluctuated over the past few years here

It seems that prices were artificially raised in the fall of 2009 and the early part of 2010, mostly due to a low inventory level and many buyers entering competing offers for the same property. As the number of properties available for sale has increased, prices have begun to drop back to their previous levels from the year before. The average sale price for August 2010 was $586,676 down from last year’s average of  $596,498. The median price of $548,500 for this year is still higher than last years median of $540,00 and is usually a better tool to gauge the market because average prices can be skewed by the sales of one or two multi-million dollar properties. See the graph of Average Sale prices in the Victoria Real Estate Market.

What does this mean for you? Well, the market has proven that it will not support overpriced listings and you should be wary of Agent’s that try to “Buy” your listing by promising you a higher price than what the market is telling you your home is worth. We all think our home is special, but the truth is buyers have a lot to choose from out there and if you want your home to be noticed in the crowd, you must price it at or near it’s sale price if you want to succeed. With half of all sellers leaving the market unsuccessfully, make sure that you price your home appropriately so that you can move forward with your goals.

Real Estate has always been a long-term investment, and if you manage your credit wisely, and don’t overspend what you can afford, you will reap the long-term benefits. See how Victoria’s Real Estate Market has performed over the last few decades and judge for yourself.