Testimonial
A. MacDonald
Dulcie was terrific to work with when we were looking for a new home in Kelowna. It was a crazy time in the home buying business but we found the perfect home and Dulcie helped us with every little detail so that we felt very confident throughout the process. I would recommend her to anyone who wants peace of mind as they go through the normally stressful process of buying a new home.
Residential real estate across the region from Revelstoke to Eastgate Manning Park and into the South Peace River region finished off the year with record-high sales, reports the Association of Interior REALTORS®.
Residential sales for the entire Association region for December 2021 saw a downtick of 25% over December 2020, clocking in at 654 units sold while still surpassing the previous recorded historical high.
“Even with a typical seasonal slowdown, sales across the region surpassed 2016’s record high,” says the Association of Interior REALTORS® President Kim Heizmann, adding that “the lack of supply continues to be a challenge for buyers as inventory lags behind demand.”
The supply of active residential listings saw a drop of 40% across the Association region compared to the 2,894 active listings during December 2020, with new listings also showing a 24% decrease over December 2020s 695 units.
“The number of active listings continues to fall short of buyer’s demand at historical levels, making it unlikely for buyers to see a softening on prices as we head into the new year,” says Heizmann.
The benchmark price for homes in the Central Okanagan, North Okanagan, South Okanagan and Shuswap/Revelstoke regions closed the year with double-digit percentage increases in year-over-year comparisons across all home categories.
In the South Peace River Region, where benchmark pricing is not available, the average price for single-family homes and mobile homes increased 44.5% and 56.9% respectively.
For more information regarding your area, please contact us.
All the best,
Dulcie & Eric
Residential sales for the entire Association region decreased 10% over the same month last year, clocking in at 1,063 residential sales in November. This was also less than October’s 1,115 sales.
“It is typical as we approach the holiday season to see residential sales slowdown within the real estate market,” says the Association of Interior REALTORS® President Kim Heizmann, adding that “the lack of homes available for purchase is certainly adding to the slowdown.”
The inventory, or supply of active residential listings was down 39% across the Association region compared to the 3,574 active listings during November 2020, while the 916 new listings for November came in at 10% lower than last year November’s units.
“As we have seen, there has been a persistent drought of inventory in the market all year as new listings are just not coming on to market quick enough to meet demand,” says Heizmann.
The benchmark price for homes in the Central Okanagan, North Okanagan, South Okanagan and Shuswap/Revelstoke regions have been consistent with double-digit percentage increases in year-over-year comparisons in all home categories.
In the South Peace River Region, where benchmark pricing is not available, the average price across all property types increased compared to the same time last year.
Contact Eric or Dulcie at Central Okanagan Homes to find out more about the real estate market and how we can help you achieve your real estate goals.
BCREA Mortgage Rate Forcast
After a sharp upturn to start the year, Canadian mortgage rates remained stable through the second quarter of 2021. That said, there was recently a significant change in mortgage qualifying as OSFI and the federal government implemented a new stress test rate, which is now the higher of a borrower’s contract rate plus 200 basis points and 5.25 per cent for both insured and uninsured mortgages. The ultimate impact of this change, however, is rather minimal compared with the prevailing qualifying rate of 4.79 per cent, and only lowers purchasing power by 4 to 5 per cent.
While there was little movement in mortgage rates over the past quarter, rising Canadian inflation – and the extent to which that inflation is a temporary phenomenon – is set to shape how rates evolve over the next year. The prevailing view on inflation, also held by the Bank of Canada, is tilted toward this recent inflation being a temporary phenomenon that should settle over the next year. If so, we should see an orderly unwinding of monetary stimulus with a gradual upward trajectory for mortgage rates beginning in 2022. If that view is incorrect and inflation sustains north of 3 per cent, or expectations of future inflation become unmoored, the Bank of Canada would be prompted to raise rates higher and earlier than expected. While such a scenario is unlikely, it remains a risk given current uncertainty.
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