FRASER VALLEY’S HOUSING MARKET QUIET, YET STABLE IN 2013 (Surrey, BC) – Neither predictions of a huge crash or notable recovery came to pass in 2013 as Fraser Valley’s real estate market stayed slow and steady, similar to 2012’s market. Fraser Valley’s total sales volume last year was 13,663 a decrease of 1.5 per cent compared to 13,878 in 2012. Over the course of the year, Fraser Valley REALTORS® listed 29,338 properties on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®), a 5.4 per cent decrease compared to 2012’s 31,009 listings. The number of active listings at year’s end finished at 7,541, 5 per cent higher compared to 7,187 active listings in December 2012. Ron Todson, President of the Fraser Valley Board, says, “It wasn’t the best of years, nor was it the worst. Generally speaking, 2013 overall was quiet. Earlier in the year, our market felt the impact of the tighter mortgage regulations, rebounded some in the summer and then flattened again come fall. “The positive for both buyers and sellers has been the stability in home prices. Although our sales last year were amongst the lowest they’ve been in last decade, we didn’t see significant price declines because our inventory also remained lower. When both buyers and sellers take a breather it has a balancing effect on the market where neither has the upper hand.” In December, the benchmark price of a detached home in the Fraser Valley was $549,500, an increase of 1.9 per cent compared to $539,000 in December 2012 and a decrease of -0.1 per cent compared to November. For townhouses, the benchmark price in December was $293,300, a decrease of 1.0 per cent compared to the same month last year when it was $296,400 and up 0.3 per cent compared to November. The benchmark price of apartments …