Greater Vancouver home prices continued to soar in March, according to Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) data released today.

The region’s benchmark home price rose to $1,360,500 in March, up 20.7 per cent from March 2021, and 3.6 per cent from February, according to the association that represents realtors and their companies.

Benchmark prices for all classes of home have been reaching new all-time highs in recent months. The region’s benchmark home price at the end of 2021 was $1,230,200.

“We’re still seeing upward pressure on prices across all housing categories in the region,” said REBGV chair Daniel John. “Lack of supply is driving this pressure.”

Sales for homes has slowed, but remains comparatively high.

Home owners transacted 4,344 sales in March, down 23.9 per cent from the record monthly high of 5,708 homes in March 2021. March’s sales total was 25.5 per cent higher than the 10-year average for that month.

New homes are being listed for sale, but less frequently than last year.

There were 6,673 detached, atttached and apartment properties listed for sale on the Multiple Listings Service in Metro Vancouver in 2022, according to the REBGV. That is 19.5 per cent down from the 8,287 homes listed for sale in March 2021, but 22 per cent more than the 5,471 homes listed for sale in February…read more.

In what is considered the largest and most expensive oceanfront condominium currently listed in Vancouver, a penthouse at the Three Harbour Green in Coal Harbour has just hit the market at an asking price of $49 million. Listing agency is Macdonald Realty of Vancouver.

Built in 2012 and totally renovated, the penthouse covers nearly 13,000 square feet on three levels, including 4,700 square feet of functional outdoor space on a balcony and two rooftop terraces.

Downstairs, a seven-car private garage and three high-security rooms provide ample storage space.

A 24/7 concierge team and grand lobby to welcome guests complete the experience, according to Macdonald’s listing material.

“This is an opportunity you simply won’t find anywhere else in Vancouver,” said listing agent Juliana Jiao…read more.

If this hasn’t been used as the home of some Admiral in a Star Trek film, then a location scout ought to be looking into it now.

While the home at 2606 Marine Drive looks like it could be located in San Francisco in 2365, it’s actually in present-day Vancouver in the Southlands. The futuristic look on the outside comes from a mix of curves, right angles, and glass, distinguishing it from the more run-of-the-mill modern designs.

However, that feeling isn’t just outside. Inside there are plenty of features that make it look like it’s from a sci-fi show. Like the lighting, recessed above the kitchen island, which itself has a clean, curvy design.

At $22 million there’s more than just some cool lighting and curvy bits.

While there’s not a lot of staging going on in the photos, it does give a clear, clean look at the space, like a sauna, a room that looks like a Dr. Crusher-worthy medical bay, and some of the seven bathrooms…read more.

The average home price in British Columbia has increased 23.5% in the past year to top $1 million for the first time, according to the BC Real Estate Association (BCREA), despite total sales in January falling nearly 15% from a year earlier.

To put this in perspective, the average B.C. composite home price is more than $685,000 higher than the average in the other three western provinces and more than $500,000 more expensive than in Quebec, the third-most expensive market in the country.

Only Ontario, with an average home price of $998,000 comes close to B.C., according to the Canadian Real Estate Association’s national price map, which was released on February 15.

The BCREA reports that a total of 6,138 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service in January 2022, a decrease of 14.7% from January 2021…read more.

It’s not just JPEGs of apes being sold as digital tokens. A house in Gulfport, FL, will be auctioned off as an NFT tomorrow in what is claimed to be the first US real estate NFT transaction. Bidding starts at $650,000 in ether.

Real estate tech company Propy is handling the sale, which would be its second NFT real estate transaction. Last year, Propy sold an apartment owned by TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington in Kiev, Ukraine, as an NFT.

How it works: The NFT will effectively replace the house’s deed by representing a limited liability corporation that owns the property rights. So, (stay with us) the winning bidder will receive an NFT of a company that owns the house.

What’s the point?

The home’s current owner Leslie Alessandra—who’s the founder of a decentralized finance company—said selling real estate NFTs could make the process of property buying as speedy as sending a Venmo by replacing the drawn out, Hogwarts letter-level of paperwork it currently is…read more.