February 23, 2009 - Kelowna Market Update for all Buyers, Sellers & Investors of Real Estate
By Jaime Briggs, REALTOR®
www.BriggsOnHomes.com
IS THE KELOWNA REAL ESTATE MARKET HEATING UP? I know that I have found things EXTREMELY busy these last 3 weeks or so. In talking with my fellow Realtors, they too are commenting about how busy it is out there these days. Properties that show well and are very well priced, seem to be getting a lot of showings! Yes, I think there definitely has been a flurry of activity out there. Just this past weekend alone, the Central Okanagan region (Kelowna) reported OVER 19 SALES! 13 SF (single family homes) for an average selling price of $394,076 and 6 strata properties for an average selling price of $337,816, these were including our ever popular “Trade” options! While the month of February has definitely heated up……..January 2009 stats were still low.
The January ’09 Stats for the Central Okanagan have just been released from the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB).
Here’s what they show (January ’09)...
LISTINGS – We had 4,648 active listings in the Central Okanagan, still up from last year. (+48.59% over last January ’08).
SALES – Total sales are again down by -64% for the month of January ’09 vs. January ’08. During the month of Jan. ’09 there were only 114 sales of which only 55 were residential single family home sales.
AVERAGE HOUSE PRICES – January ’09 average price for SF house was only $ 411,591 vs. $484,144 Jan. ’08. This is a decrease of almost -15% from last year.
HERE’S THE PROVINCIAL STATS FROM THE BCREA.
BC Home Sales Start with a Whimper in 2009
Vancouver, BC – February 16, 2009. British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports residential sales dollar volume on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in BC declined 61 per cent to $873 million in January, compared to the same month last year. Residential unit sales fell 57 per cent to 2,115 units during the same period. The average MLS® residential price in the province was $412,934 in January, down 9 per cent from January 2008.
“Home sales were sluggish in January, reflecting an overall malaise in consumer confidence and a weakening provincial economy,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist.
“Reports of an increasing number of consumers shopping for a home have yet to materialize in the sales statistics,” added Muir. “The large selection of homes for sale in January likely reduced any sense of urgency for potential homebuyers to commit to a purchase."
Improving home affordability resulting from lower mortgage rates and home prices is expected to elevate sales activity in the province this spring.
For more market statistics and graphs go to www.OMREB.com or go to www.BriggsOnHomes.com