Consumer Confidence

The balance of sentiment regarding major purchases has stayed negative for three consecutive quarters, hitting its lowest point in more than a decade. This negative balance of opinion means more households believe it is a bad time to buy a big ticket item such as a home or a car. This indicator is an important factor underlying the housing market. Rising food and fuel cost are continuing to take a large bite of household budgets and households expect finances to dim even further over the next 6 months to reach the lowest point in seven years. For the first time in almost five years more people expect fewer jobs than those who said they expect more jobs. All this leads to a less active housing market and makes pricing a key to turning your home listing into your home sold. The Canadian Real Estate Council and Vancouver Island Real Estate continue to note that there are buyers out there they just want to pay what the market predicts.