Canadians are feeling the financial pressure exerted by increases in the cost of fuel, food and all the products associated with using fuel and producing food products. Canadians who have been considering purchasing a new home this year are taking a step back to analysis the changing real estate market and determine whether it might be more prudent for them to put off buying a new home until the price of everything stabilizes and begins labelling off.

Decreased equity with which to purchase that second house in the current economically uncertain environment combined with slowed economic growth in Canada and on going bad news from the American housing recession has eroded consumer confidence in the current buying conditions. Making people, who were considering buying a new home, take a step back in their plans and revaluate the increasing costs of their life styles, in the light of their current income.

The impact of the increased fuel and food costs has been felt the greatest in B.C.’s Okanagan and Kootenay regions where more people have been sitting on the housing market sidelines. Many of B.C’s real estate markets have fallen over the edge into the buyers’ category of the real estate market as the number of houses for sale out paces the numbers that are being purchased.

The hottest markets in 2008 are currently the big urban real estate markets in the Lower Mainland and Victoria, but this will change as conditions and costs change in this balanced market. Greater Vancouver sales dropped almost 31 percent in May, compared with last year, while house listings increased by 38 percent.

In the Fraser Valley, where I live, sales dropped 25 percent, while listings went up by 38 percent. A large number of Fraser Valley residents have recently put their house on the real estate market as a response to the changing economic conditions in the Province and Canada.

The number of sales has dropped across the British Columbian real estate market, while the number of available units for sale has reached levels not seen since around 2000. The average sale price has continued to increase during the past few months, with the average price currently being around $475,000 in British Columbia.
It appears that Canada’s six year housing boom has come to an end, this year activity in 19 or 20 real estate markets was below 2007 levels.

Many Canadians will be selling their homes this year, me included, in an attempt to get some of the money we paid for our house originally, before it’s gone forever. I like many of my fellow British Columbians’ came to this conclusion after losing about 30 percent of equity on my house last year due to the changing real estate market.

If I sell it now and get my money out, then I can buy another house later when conditions are better in the province, like next year or the year after, instead of losing another 30 percent this year, if I try to hang onto it. I’m willing to bet I’ll be able to buy a comparable home to the new one I am currently living for less than I sold it for in a few years.

After all the idea in a market economy is to sell high and buy low, even if your have a limited budget this is a sound policy and one sure to make you money, provided your able to do so.