Hottest April in BC for Home Sales in a Decade

Through out the province of BC the British Columbia Real Estate Association reports that there has been a total of 9,952 residential unit sales were recorded by the MLS in May, up 28.7 per cent from the same month last year. Total sales dollar volume was $6.3 billion, a 45.5 per cent increase in comparison to last year. The average MLS residential price in the province rose to $634,744, a 13 per cent increase since last May. Last month was the strongest April for home sales in a decade. 

With the elevated level of the buying activity this spring, it is now expected to push 2015 home sales to their highest level since 2007. Consumers are taking full advantage of rock bottom interest rates and are demonstrating significant confidence in the housing market. However, with dwindling inventories combined with competition for detached homes in the province`s large urban markets is pushing home prices higher. During the first four months of 2015, BC residential sales dollar volume rose 37.1 per cent to $19 billion, when compared with the same period in 2014. Residential unit sales increased by 24.5 per cent to 30,091 units, while the average MLS residential price rose 10.1 per cent to $631,860.

We are having an Interesting start to 2015

January may have been typically slow in our area but February exploded with a flurry of business that surprised even the optimists among us.  Sales in February were up 43% over the same month last year; 379 vs. 265!  A huge increase!  Also, there were 932 new listings in February this year compared to 839 last year, giving us an active base of just over 2000 listings.  

While the total number of listings is below last year at this time, the rise in new listings in February is encouraging.  Another interesting statistic is “Days on Market” which tells us how long a property took to sell. In February, the Days on Market dropped from 110 days last year to 86 days this year.
The buying activity is strong with a good mix of properties selling across the pricing spectrum.  The strongest growth in sales was in the $400,000 to $479,000 price range (up 68%) with most other price ranges showing sales growth of between 30% and 40% compared to 2014.

While it is still too early to say there will be no impact on the market resulting from the drop in oil prices, we are seeing a healthy start to 2015 which gives support to reasonable optimism.  The U.S. economy continues to show renewed strength with Canada not far behind.  The strength of the U.S. dollar and the weakening Canadian dollar may well be a positive thing for the resource based economy of BC.  As the U.S. grows, so does the demand for our lumber and other exports which is further enhanced by the lower Canadian dollar.  While the lower Canadian dollar is frustrating to those holidaying in the U.S., for our economy, it is a significant benefit.  Flowing from this is the stability of our employment and from that the stability and strength of our real estate market. 
Interest rates are holding at record lows with no real sign of change in the near to mid-range ahead.  Overall, we expect a good year in 2015 with continued growth in the economy resulting in steady buying and selling activity.

Market Report for January

Buyers felt slightly more optimistic to the start of 2013 than in the last few years.
Overall sales were up 3.8% in the Central Zone in comparison to the same month last year as reported by the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board.

In January, 219 properties traded hands in comparison to 211 in 2012. These sales represented a sales volume improvement of over 17% and equated to a dollar volume of $87.7 million in comparison to 2012’s dollar volume of $74.8 million. The continued low cost of borrowing buoyed demand as reflected in the total residential sales for last month rose 4.2% with 197 units sold versus 189 units sold in January of last year.

The sales volume for total residential sales also increased a significant 17.51% representing over $49 million in comparison to $42 million last year. The single family homes and townhouse sector showed an improvement of 4.9% and 16% respectively. The average for all types of Residences was also up 8.93% and came in at $394,815 in comparison to 2012’s $362,440 average.

This total takes into account all styles of residential living including mobile homes, duplex’s, recreational real estate, timeshares, apartments and townhomes. Values and marketing times vary depending on location, property type and price range.

HIGGINS REPORT ON THE MARKET.

The Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board
reported MLS® Total Residential Unit Sales were up
8.08% in the month of April with 321 sales in comparison
to the 297 which occurred in 2011. Year-To-
Date however total residential sales were up only
marginally at 3.43% with 1087 this year in comparison
to 1051 in 2011.
April was a strong month for apartment style
unit sales which were up 23.53% last month over
previous year with 63 sales reported in 2012 vs. 51
last year. Year-To-Date apartment sales are up
18.09% with 235 units sold this year in comparison
to the 199 sold last year. This is a great news for our
strata/condominium market as we currently have
913 apartment units on the market representing
15.5 months of inventory based on 2012 monthly
YTD unit sales levels.
Similarly OMREB’s average residential sale price
held its own for the month of April coming in at
$482,093 which is up only .21% from 2011’s April
average of $481,077. Year-To-Date however averages
are down 3.39% for Residential properties
coming in at $452,859 this year vs. $468,732. When
we factor in all types of Residential Real Estate the
Average Sale Price drops 2.36% from last year to
$384,484 vs. $393,764. The length of time listings
are on the market has been extended over last year
with 2012 YTD Days to Sell coming in at 102 vs. 96 in
2011.
At RE/MAX Offices within the Central Okanagan
things are looking up with our Average Unit Sales
Up 10% over last year, our Average Residential Total
Sale Price is up to $398,195 which is higher than the
OMREB Average and our YTD Days to Sell is down to
88 Days which is the lowest reported for all major
brokerage firms and 31% lower than the average of
our competitors!
Home market values depend on a variety of
factors such as location, inventory, condition and
completion.

HIGGINS REPORT ON THE MARKET....

Stats Comparison 2012 vs. 2011 for the Month of Feb.

Number of Sales by Month:
Feb 2012                        Feb 2011
       289                                 249
Number of Sales Year to Date:
Feb 2012                        Feb 2011
       500                                 462
Residential House Prices by Month
Feb 2012                        Feb 2011
Average $437,267                 $444,134
Median $404,950                  $422,000
Residential House Prices Year to Date:
Feb 2012                         Feb 2011
Average $427,635                 $441,179
Median $403,600                  $413,500
Number of Units Listed:
Feb 2012                           Feb 2011
       954                                    1,022
Days to Sell by Month - Residential:
Feb 2012                           Feb 2011
       83                                      86
Days to Sell Year to Date - Residential:
Feb 2012                            Feb 2011
       91                                       96
Single Family Sales by PriceYear to Date:
                                                           2011         2012

Price range:
$0 - $239,999                                             7              7
$240,000 - $319,999                                  23            34
$320,000 - $399,999                                  72            75
$400,000 - $479,999                                  54            50
$480,000 - $559,999                                  39            33
$560,000 - $999,999                                  31            33
$1 million & over                                        2              1

Active Inventory Central Okanagan - February 2012
Res.- 1,391
Condo. - 922  
Mobiles - 206
Lots - 550

 *Based on MLS® Active Listings & Sold Units as Reported by OMREB in 2011 for Central Okanagan.