The Ella tower in Kelowna, seen in a photo from earlier this year, is 86 per cent sold. It's to open next spring.

(ROB MUNRO / iNFOnews.ca)

KELOWNA - The market for downtown Kelowna condos has been hot, according to a national real estate firm, while the rest of the housing categories are in a balance between a buyers and sellers market.

“We've been hearing that several new buildings downtown are nearly sold out,” the Re/Max report states. “After speaking with the city planner, it sounds like some big projects like the Westcorp Hotel will likely be starting construction within the next 12 months.”

The Ella tower, which opens next spring on the corner of Ellis and Lawrence, is 86 per cent sold while the Brooklin at Bernard and Bertram is already 97 per cent sold, even though it doesn’t open until a year later, the report states.

As for current sales, Re/Max said almost 17 per cent of single-family homes that were listed in September sold, which is slightly above the average for the month. Prices are holding steady but homes costing more than $1 million are harder to sell.

Townhouses are selling at a higher rate (19 per cent), in part because the number of listings is falling. There are 363 townhomes listed for sale while the 10-year average is 420.

There were fewer sales than expected in the apartment/condo category but that brings it in line with the 10-year average and just falling into a buyers market, but the report states, it’s too early to determine whether this is the start of a trend.

The report indicates a buyers market happening when 15 per cent or fewer listings sell and a sellers market starting at 25 per cent. The apartment/condo group came in at just under 15 per cent.

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