Real estate sales, house prices rising in Central Okanagan

Residential real estate sales in the Okanagan appear to have rebounded in June following a stagnant May.

The Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB) says sales were so active last month that they went up by nine per cent over the same time period last year despite having 14 per cent less inventory.

Further, OMREB is cautiously optimistic that the region’s housing market — which stretches from Peachland to Revelstoke — may bounce back quicker than expected.

“These numbers are a positive indicator that real estate in the Okanagan is recovering from the pandemic induced slowdown of the previous three months,” said OMREB president Kim Heizmann.

“While we are not on the other side of this yet, this is a cautiously optimistic sign that the housing market may bounce back sooner than forecast.”

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Single-family home sales in the Central Okanagan were up 22.5 per cent month over month, with the average sale price up 3.1 per cent to $684,000.

Overall, 261 homes were sold, with the average turnaround taking 61 days, an increase of 17.9 per cent.

The North Okanagan saw fewer sales, at 106, a drop of 2.8 per cent, but prices rose 3.5 per cent to $492,500. The average turnaround time was 72 days, up 32.9 per cent.

In the Shuswap and Revelstoke, 63 homes were sold, up 14.6 per cent, with an average price of $432,100, up 0.9 per cent. The average turnaround time was 77 days, up 9.5 per cent.

In the South Okanagan, single-family home sales rose to 121 units in June from 71 units in May, with the average price rising to $617,986 from $605,768 in May.