For the tenth month in a row, home sales have fallen by double digits. According to the latest report from Coordenada Urbana, a sector information system of the Colombian Chamber of Construction (Camacol), in August housing units sold fell by 52% compared to the same period in 2023, from 18,192 units sold to just 8,699 units this year. Anus.
The most affected segment that has pushed these numbers down is that of Social Interest Housing (VIS), which recorded an annual decline in sales of 57%, while 13,037 units in this line were sold in the same month up to August 2022 In 2023 5,613 units were sold.
The non-VIS segment also saw a significant decline this month, with sales falling by 40%, from 5,155 units sold in the eighth month of 2022 to 3,086 units.
The department that recorded the largest decline in sales is Valle, with a fluctuation of -74% in the eighth month of the year on an annual basis. A year ago, the department sold 2,687 units in August and only 710 this year.
While 2,335 VIS units were sold in August 2022, 577 houses were sold this year, meaning sales fell by more than 75%.
In second place is the department of Atlántico, with a 66% drop in housing sales in August, because while 2,034 housing units were sold in 2022, a year later there were only 698 units. In the VIS segment, sales fell 74.2% in August, from 1,703 units sold to 438 units this year.
The declining Atlántico is followed by Risaralda with a deviation of -63% in the eighth month of the year, selling 309 units less annually (490 units compared to 181 units). Likewise, 213 units fewer were sold in VIS than in August 2022, that is, sales in this department fell by 65.2% (325 units versus 112 units).
Other departments with negative fluctuations in the month of August were Cauca (60%), Boyacá (56%), Norte de Santander (55%), Antioquia (55%), Bolívar and Bogotá and Cundinamarca (51%), Caldas (41). %), Nariño (38%), Tolima (37%), among others (see graphic).
According to the report presented by Camacol, 87,156 residential units have been sold so far this year, 49.8% less than in 2022 (173,575 units).
In the VIS segment, 57,836 apartments were sold through August, 54.1% less than in 2022, as 125,957 units were sold in the same period.
For the non-VIS segment, the decline for the current year is 38.4%; in 2022, 47,618 apartments were sold as of August and 29,320 residential units were marketed in 2023.
Since the construction industry is noticing less momentum among households when purchasing houses, the start of new projects has suffered significantly.
Not only are sales numbers falling month after month, but also new construction starts and future supply.
In August, for example, new residential construction was down 51% on an annual basis. While 14,415 ready-to-sell units were brought onto the market in 2022, this year it was only half (7,050 units).
Although construction companies are reducing their production rate, the decline in the non-VIS segment (-36%) is smaller than in the social interest segment (57%), which would indicate a reduction in the future VIS The supply and availability of the on Households most at risk of finding housing in the coming years will be improved.
