VANCOUVER -- Sales remained steady while fewer people put their homes on the real estate market in Metro Vancouver last month.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver reports residential home sales in January were 7.3 per cent below the 10-year average but still more than 42 per cent higher than sales during January 2019.

Board president Ashley Smith says 2020 began with fewer homes listed for sale than is typical for this time of year, but she says there was steady demand for the listings.

The spring market is usually more active and Smith says the board will be watching to see if home listings keep pace with demand.

Apartment sales jumped to 814 units last month, a 45.6 per cent increase compared with January last year, while the benchmark price slipped 1.5 per cent to $663,200.

The benchmark price for a detached home in Greater Vancouver also fell in January by 1.7 per cent to just over $1.43 million.