The 4,060 Greater Vancouver home sales recorded on MLS® in March marked a 53.7-per-cent increase compared to the same period last year, reported the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV). Last month’s Greater Vancouver home sales bested the 10-year sales average for March by 26.8 per cent.

With 3,061 sales recorded in February 2015, the March 2015 stats also marked a month-over-month increase of 32.6 per cent.

“We’re seeing strong competition amongst home buyers today. This is leading to more multiple offer situations and some upward pressure on homes prices,” said REBGV president Darcy McLeod. “For sellers, this means that it’s taking less time, on average, for your home to sell if you have it priced correctly for today’s market.”

March’s 5,968 new listings, representing detached, attached and apartment properties in Metro Vancouver, topped new listings in the same period last year by 13 per cent. They also topped the 10-year average for the month, by 4.7 per cent.

The 12,376 properties now listed for sale on the REBGV MLS® represent a four-per-cent increase from February 2015 but a 14.5-per-cent decrease from March 2014.

“The number of homes for sale today is below what’s typical for this time of year,” said McLeod.

At $660,700, the MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all Metro Vancouver residential properties was up 7.2 per cent from March 2014.

In March 2015, the sales-to-active-listings ratio reached its highest level in Metro Vancouver since July 2007, coming in at 32.8 per cent.

Apartment property sales for the month increased 47.1 per cent, to 1,627, compared to March 2014. The benchmark price for an apartment property also rose this March, to $390,200, up 3.3 per cent from the same month last year.