Hello everyone!
It’s been a busy fall and start to the winter season here in the valley. While we are still seeing lower than average inventory – we are very much dealing with an active market with motivated purchasers, with the The Kootenay Association of Realtors announcing another record breaking month in the region. This is the fourth month in a row that real estate sales have broken records. As much as these types of statements and numbers are great to see, there is still concern over inventory levels, which continue to be low. This will essentially shape the market behaviour as we head into the winter months.
As per BCREA, Canadian housing starts increased by 3% m/m to 214,875 units in October at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR), following a decline in September. In BC, building activity was up by 6% in the single-detached segment, while multi-unit starts were down by 11%. In the near term, we can expect housing activity to continue to be supported by strong demand and historically low borrowing rates. Meanwhile, the value of residential building permits was up in September by 34%. Compared to the same time last year, housing starts were down by 11% in BC.
Other reports from BCREA show that a total of 11,051 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service®(MLS®) in October 2020, an increase of 43.8 percent from October 2019. The average MLS® residential price in BC set a record of $812,960, a 12.5 per cent increase from $722,333 recorded the previous year.
“The provincial housing market sustained its blistering pace of activity in October,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “While pent-up demand may be starting to fade, record low interest rates and a recovering job market are supporting strong sales.”
Despite the impact of Covid, the BC Real Estate Market, and specifically Fernie, still remains as a top choice for home buyers. Month by month, we are seeing increased market confidence, and after our typical spring-type market hit us more in the mid-late summer, it will be interesting to see what type of effect that has as we move into December and January – but if the last month has been an indicator – there’s no real sign of slowing down quite yet.
If you’ve been thinking about listing, get in touch with us, or get started with your own market evaluation by using this tool on our website.
We’re always here to answer any questions you might have. Send us an email at ma**@fe**************.com, or give us a shout at (250) 423-2000
