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Vancouver Realtors warn of dramatic sales slump as September data expected

Photo courtesy The Canadian Press.

Real estate agents say home sales continued to fall dramatically in the Vancouver area last month and even hit a 10-year low in some neighbourhoods.

Agents say the high-end detached home market is seeing the most substantial losses, while the condominium and townhome market remains active.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, which covers a large swath of Metro Vancouver but excludes several large suburbs including Surrey, is set to release its home sales data for the month of September tomorrow.

The numbers are expected to provide more insight into the effects of British Columbia's foreign-buyers tax, which was introduced Aug. 2 after the market already showed signs of cooling.

Realtor Steve Saretsky has analyzed the listing and sales data and he says sales fell to 2006 levels on the city's east side, to 2008 levels on the west side and to 2012 levels for the region as a whole.

Adil Dinani, a real estate agent with Royal LePage, says sales of condos and townhomes remain strong, with multiple offers and sales at or above the listing price.

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