According to statistics released by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), national home sales posted their third monthly increase and broke all previous monthly records. The South Okanagan Real Estate Board has also reported an increase with a total of 430 residential sales so far this year across the board area, up 16% from the same period in 2015.
Oliver’s sales were up 35% so far this year for a total year-to-date residential sales of 38. In Osoyoos, there were 47 sales, up 38% from 2015. The average sale price of single family home year-to-date in the SOREB area is $408,849. There were a total of 1167 active residential listings at the end of March 2015.
OLIVER: In Oliver 11 single family homes sold in March for a total year to date of 27 sales. This compares to 12 single family sales in March of 2015 with a total year to date last year of 22. So far this year, there have been 2 mobile home sales and 9 condo/townhome sales. At the end of March this year there were 159 active residential listings compared to 170 on the same date last year. This means there is more than 11 months supply of homes currently on the market (still firmly in a Buyer’s market. The average sale price of a single family home so far this year was $326,218. This compares to an average sale price at this time last year of $336,640. So, while it looks like there may be upward pressure on prices, the of inventory on the market indicates that the increase is due to more higher priced homes selling this year than last.
OSOYOOS: In Osoyoos, 12 single family homes sold in March for a total year-to-date of 27 homes. This compares to 8 sales in March 2015, and a total year-to-date sales last year of 22. So far this year, there have been no mobile homes sold and 20 condo/townhomes (which is about 67% more than the 12 sold last year). At the end of March this year there were 253 active residential listings, which is slightly lower than the 287 homes on the market last year. This represents a 13.5 month supply of listings. The average sale price of a single family home sold this year is $448,826 which is significantly higher than the $292,105 at the end of March i
n 2015.
The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a record 12,560 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in March, up 38 per cent from March of last year. Home sales last month eclipsed the previous record of 11,683 unit sales in May of 2007. Total sales dollar volume was $9.69 billion in March, up 66.9 per cent compared to the previous year. The average MLS® residential price in the province was up 20.2 per cent year-over-year, to $771,620.
“Housing demand has never been stronger in the province,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. “Most large population centres of the province are now experiencing record levels of housing demand.”
“Strong employment growth, rising wages and a marked increase in net inter-provincial migration is fueling consumer confidence,” added Muir.
Supply imbalances are becoming increasingly common as new residential listings are not keeping pace with consumer demand. As a result, the inventory of homes for sale is at decade long lows in many regions.
The year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume increased 70.1 per cent to $21.59 billion, when compared with the same period in 2015. Residential unit sales climbed by 39.2 per cent to 28,028 units, while the average MLS® residential price was up 22.2 per cent to $770,408.