Spring is in the air and we are starting to see its effects in Real Estate too. Kelowna and the Central Okanagan Valley are experiencing a real estate market unlike any we’ve seen in the past decade. It’s predominantly a buyer’s market with pockets that are more balanced. In the coming days and weeks you’ll hear from news outlets and other local Realtors® that the Kelowna real estate market is down again but what they may not tell you is that sales are actually up nearly 30% from February! This month-over-month increase is considerably higher than the nearly 20% increase we saw last year at this time. Inventory increased as it tends to do in the Spring and in following the trend we’ve seen since mid-2018 it is up considerably compared to a year ago. There may be several factors directing the slower moving buyer’s market we’re experiencing but with inventory up 31.3% and sales only down 16.75% compared to March of last year, the increased level of inventory appears to be having the most impact.

Central Okanagan Average Price for Residential Properties (All)

Average Price for Residential Properties is a performance indicator that speaks to purchaser confidence in the market. This figure is an average across all residential categories including: single detached homes, duplexes, condominiums, townhouses, and mobile homes.

The average valuation of residential properties was up by 5.25% month-over-month though it is down 5.62% from this time last year and is still down by 15.8% since the record setting month of July 2018. The speed of which the market is moving is 72 days which is down ever so slightly from last month but continues to tell the story of a slower market. In comparison, it was just 50 days in March for both of the past two years.

The Pulse - Value Request

Name

First Name

Last Name

Email

Phone

(###)

###

####

Address

Address 1

Address 2

City

State/Province

Zip/Postal Code

Country

Let’s talk about condominiums. March saw a substantial shift in Kelowna’s condo market which has been lagging since last October. Sales were up by 92% from February. That’s right! February saw just 50 transactions in the condo market and March saw 96! Condo inventory increased like the other segments of the market did but by just 8.1% compared to 17.6% for single family homes. This means we went from 10.1 months of condo inventory to only 5.69 months of inventory taking us from a solid buyer’s market back to a balanced market. If you’ve been thinking of selling your Kelowna condo, this Spring might just be the right time to get it on the market.

For single family homes, nearly all neighbourhoods are experiencing a buyer’s market. There are, however, two neighbourhoods bucking the trend with their affordable, family-friendly communities:

Rutland: 2.85 MOI
Glenmore: 3.21 MOI

On the other end of the spectrum, two neighbourhoods that stand out with lots of inventory and offer buyers an opportunity to take advantage of a strong buyer’s market are:

Kettle Valley: 19.2 MOI (currently 48 homes for sale)
Lower Mission: 15.6 MOI (currently 78 homes for sale)

MARCH 2019 - Months of Inventory by Neighbourhood

Months of Inventory is a performance indicator that represents the ratio of active listings to sales in the past month, expressed in terms of how long those currently active listings would supply future demand if the rate of that demand were to continue (Ex. There are 100 home currently listed for sale and in the last month 20 homes sold. 20 homes could be sold each month for the next 5 months without new listings coming on. Therefore, the MOI is 5.)

All data is from OMREB/MLS® System. Interpretations of the data is done with the utmost care and attention, however, errors and omissions may apply. Selling and purchasing real estate comes with risk and should be discussed in depth with your real estate agent of choice.