The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver has reported that the number of August housing sales were down 22.8 percent from the previous month.

The 2,489 transactions last month was also 26 percent below the sales volume for August 2015 and 10.2 percent below the figure in August 2014.

The biggest drop was in detached properties, which fell 44.6 percent from the same month a year ago. Attached properties saw a 25.4 percent fall in volume on a year-over-year basis, whereas apartment sales were down by just 10.1 percent.

The REBGV data covered the first month in which the B.C. government's new 15 percent tax on foreign buyers was in effect.

“The record-breaking sales we saw earlier this year were replaced by more historically normal activity throughout July and August,” REBGV president Dan Morrison said in a news release. "Sales have been trending downward in Metro Vancouver for a few months. The new foreign buyer tax appears to have added to this trend by reducing foreign buyer activity and causing some uncertainty amongst local home buyers and sellers."

According to the REBGV, the August sales total was 3.5 percent lower than the 10-year average for that month.

In July, residential property sales fell 18.9 percent over the same month in 2015. Sales volumes have fallen on a month-by-month basis for five consecutive months. The REBGV's territory does not include Surrey, Langley, White Rock, and North Delta, which are all part of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board.

The benchmark price for detached properties was up 35.8 percent last month on a year-over-year basis to $1,577,300. Apartment prices were up 26.9 percent on the year, with the benchmark reaching $514,300. The benchmark for an attached home rose 31.1 percent on a year-over-year basis to $677,600.