Smaller markets in British Columbia are posting the highest increases this year as the province has seen an overall 18% spike in residential sales, according to the BC Real Estate Association.
Provincial leaders include the south Okanagan, where sales on the multiple listing service (MLS) shot up 46.8% in the first quarter of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013, and the central Okanagan, which has seen sales rise 22.3% and average home prices jump nearly 7% to $386,126.
An example of the action is the Lakeshore at Manteo, a luxury waterfront development on Okanagan Lake at Kelowna, where four villas, each priced at $1.3 million, have sold in the past three months.
“The sales success of this project is encouraging for Kelowna. It has impressed and boosted the confidence of the real estate community,” said Adrian Block, president and CEO of White Rock-based Rykon Group, which is building 11 villas in Phase 1 of the resort.
Other hot markets are the Kootenays, where sales are up 36.6% so far this year, and Powell River, where sales advanced 16.7%, the BCREA reports.
As a comparison, housing sales in Greater Vancouver are up 23.4% through the first quarter and increased 16.1% in the Fraser Valley. Victoria sales are up 11.1%.
The average price of a B.C. home sold through MLS in April was $561,613. The lowest average home price is in Northern B.C., at around $250,000. The highest price is in Greater Vancouver, at $814,873.
