Kelowna's Market.

So, how’s the market? This is the question I get asked more than any other! The quick answer is, it’s very BUSY or at least it has been for me. But this question actually has two answers and it depends whether you’re a buyer or a seller.

Sellers, of course, are ecstatic because when they make the decision to sell their home, it is not a 4 or 5-month process of home showings and waiting for that all elusive showing appointment or offer. Sellers are seeing an almost immediate response when they list their homes, especially if the price is below $650,000. Some are selling the first day on the market with multiple offers.

Buyers, on the other hand, are finding it a little more challenging to get the perfect home. With lower than normal inventory levels and higher demand for listings, buyers who aren’t working with a professional agent, that is full time and on top of the current market, don’t even get the opportunity to act on a property before it’s gone.

Here are some of the market highlights:

• Residential listing inventories are down - listing inventories decreased by just .5 % from May 2015 to May 2016 and by 2.44% year to-date compared to 2015.

• Residential sales are up - way up! - Sales increased by a whopping 42.73% from May 2015 compared to May 2016 and a 30.98%

increase year to-date over 2015.

• Average house prices are up! – the price of a single family home in May 2016 was up by 19.23% compared to $504,262 in May 2015.

• Residential properties are selling faster – the average number of days on the market has decreased to 53 days in May 2016 from 71 days in May 2015.

Buyer gridlock, a term that refers to a situation where sellers are hesitant to list their properties for sale because of a lack of inventory or affordable options to move to when their home sells. As a result, they are staying where they are and making it work and that’s limiting the number of entry level options for buyers who are trying to get into the market. We are starting to hear sellers voicing this concern in the Okanagan.

As this starts to become a reality, it will lower inventories further making it more difficult to find the perfect home. This has been an issue in Toronto and Vancouver markets for some time, but as sales continue to increase and inventories remain low in the Okanagan, we expect to see more of this creeping into our market.