The hot pace of real estate sales in the Kootenay region shows no sign of abating, as the Kootenay Association of Realtors announced another record breaking month in October.
KAR reports a total of 434 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® in October 2020, a rise of 41.6 per cent from October 2019. The average MLS residential price in the region was $392,827, a 16.3 per cent rise from $337,667 recorded in October last year. Total sales dollar volume in October was $170.4 million, a 64.4 per cent rise over 2019, which stood at $103.6 million.
“This has been the best October for real estate sales the region has seen in a very long time. Over the last six months we haven’t seen many COVID-19 cases and even in the wake of a second wave in the province, I believe sales in the region will hit record numbers in the coming months too. The demand is higher than usual and I can see this continuing at least until Christmas. While the pen-up demand caused by the pandemic seems to have withered, it’s worth noting that jobs which mainly support housing ownership have remained unscathed, and this is probably why the demand in the region is still high”, says KAR President Tyler Hancock.
In the East Kootenay, 263 listings, with an average price of $376,782 were sold for a total sales value of $99,093,669.
In the West, 132 listings, with an average price of $453,593 sold for a total of $59,874,333.
Average selling price in the region is up by 16 per cent since October 2019 and has been rising consistently over the last six months. However, inventory levels are lower than usual.
We need to make conservative forecasts about average pricing in the region,” Hancock said. “I am sure the realtors here are wary of the fact that inventory levels are very low. While that could cause average prices to increase at a rapid rate, it is the strong demand for single-family homes in the region that’s the driving force behind this consistent rise. On the other hand, we have added a little more inventory than we had this time last year. With mortgage deferrals ending in October, it will be interesting to see if we add more inventory in the coming months, which could stabilize average prices in the region.”
Year-to-date, Kootenay MLS residential sales dollar in October was $1.1 billion, nearly 24 per cent higher than what it was last year. YTD Residential unit sales were up for the second time running by 12.3 per cent at 2939 units, while the average MLS residential price (YTD) was up by 10.3 per cent to $378,945.
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