The province’s buoyant home sale market has become a major multi billion-dollar dynamo in the provincial economy, the British Columbia Real Estate Association said yesterday.

It said home sales have generated an estimated $9.4 billion in related spending and created nearly 78,600 jobs since 2001.

The study was prepared by the Economic Planning Group and it estimates the economic impacts triggered by the transactions surrounding a typical residential Multiple Listing Service sale in 2003, including legal fees, property appraisals, moving expenses, utility connections, home renovations, furniture and appliance purchases and taxes.

Gordon Maroney, BCREA president, said the numbers clearly illustrate of just how important the sector is to the province’s economy.

“Home sales don’t just reflect consumer confidence or low mortgage rates, they create jobs and generate spending in other areas, [such as] home improvement furniture sales, for other professionals,” he said.

The study estimates every house that sells through the MLS generates $28,000 in related spending and contributes over $12,500 to the B.C. GDP, produce one quarter of a job and generates $5,400 in tax revenue.

Despite a general slowing in housing sales, B.C. is going to have another record year.

To date 90,456 housing units worth $26.1 billion have changed hands already smashing through the $24.1 billion in sales last year.

That performance, says Maroney, represents the creation of 21,000 jobs and the generation of an addition of $2.5 billion in spending.

© The Vancouver Province 2004