Kelowna homes sales bucking trend

Canadian homes sales fell in January due to the deep freeze. Overall in Canada the number of existing homes selling decreased for the 5th consecutive month in January while prices rose.  The Canadian Real Estate Association  reported that the number of sales dropped 3.3% in January adjusted on a seasonal basis.  Sales activity has fallen 9.1% since the peak in August.  CREA blames the weather.   

Photo: Contributed

I always cringe when anyone blames the weather for poor real estate numbers but no one can deny that it’s been one long brutal winter for the folks on the other side of the Rockies.  When the Toronto condo market has a poor month it drags the overall averages down nationwide.  And when prices soar in Vancouver it impacts averages coast to coast.  It’s dangerous to shrug these numbers off thinking they have little bearing on what happens here in Kelowna because they do.  The bank of Canada certainly watches these numbers closely which means the chances of a rise in interest rates is less likely.

The Weather has been pretty good in Kelowna. And it showed 90 new Kelowna homes listed last week and 37 Kelowna condos listed.  There were 13 condo/apartment sales and 33 Kelowna residential home sales.  So far this year there have been 178 residential sales compared to 174 this time last year so we appear to be bucking a national trend.  Maybe the Polar Vortex they experienced on the other side of the country did have an impact on their numbers so there is likely some pent up demand building. 

Nationally, prices in January rose 9.5% over the previous January.  The average price in Canada last month was $388,553.

For a FREE consultation call Andrew Smith 250-979-8066 or search for Kelowna real estate listings daily at http://www.okanaganbc.com/listings-search/

Over 22 years experience helping people achieve their dream of home ownership!

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.