Sales down but prices up in Kamloops, Okanagan real estate markets
Wildfires may have played a role in slowing housing sales in Kamloops and the Okanagan in August compared to July but prices rose slightly in most housing classes.
“While sales activity seems muted compared to the unusually high activity over the last few years, when comparing to pre-pandemic years it held up pretty steadily in August,” Association of Interior Realtors president Chelsea Mann said in a news release. “The high cost of borrowing and the raging wildfires across the province likely played a part in subduing market activity.”
Month to month fluctuations in prices often vary by tens of thousands of dollars.
Association statistics released today, Sept. 6, show August prices for single-family houses in the Central Okanagan, South Okanagan and Kamloops all rose by less than $5,000.
Central Okanagan benchmark, or typical, prices continue to top the Interior of BC at $1,068,700 for single-family houses. The South Okanagan came in at $770,000 while Kamloops was the most affordable at $676,800.
READ MORE: Okanagan residents flee high prices to relocate to Alberta
The North Okanagan went in the opposite direction by falling $15,200 to $763,100 for single-family houses.
Townhouses also dropped significantly in the North Okanagan, by $21,900, while they rose in price in the other three markets from $6,300 in Kamloops to $17,500 in the Central Okanagan.
Condos are the most affordable homes in the Interior real estate market.
Kamloops was the only city to see a drop in condo prices in August, by $10,300, to $392,300.
Increases in the Okanagan ranged from $6,100 to $10,000. Condos are most affordable in the North Okanagan at $350,400, rising to $449,300 in the South Okanagan and $525,700 in the Central Okanagan.
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