Residential property values in the Vancouver Sea-to-Sky region are generally stable, according to 2014 assessments, while homeowners in Kitimat have seen their values spike 27%.
Property values in the Vancouver region will fluctuate by about 5%, up or down, the BC Assessment Authority said in a release.
But values in Vancouver were generally down, with a downtown two-bedroom apartment dropping from $567,000 to $543,000 while an east-side two bedroom apartment fell to $364,000 from $383,000. Properties in North Vancouver (both the city and district) were generally up except in Upper and Lower Lonsdale and Lynn Valley.
"For the second time in as many years, most homes in Vancouver Sea to Sky region are remaining stable in value compared to last year's assessment roll," said Dharmesh Sisodraker, deputy assessor for the BC Assessment Authority.
The public is able to find out the value of properties by going to the BC Assessment website and entering addresses.
Sisodraker said questionnaires were sent to condominium owners last year to get information to gauge the value of units. That is why units in multi-family buildings can vary widely, he explained.
"We asked whether renovations had been completed and that sort of thing for us to better understand what these properties are worth in the marketplace," Sisodraker said.
Surrey properties similarly tended to be down slightly compared with a year ago although single family homes in Whalley were up 5% to $487,700. Single family homes in south Surrey, in contrast, were down an average of more than 2.7%.
"I don't think values have changed very much in Vancouver at all," said Cameron Muir, chief economist for the BC Real Estate Association.
"If we look at the benchmark prices, we're talking a per cent or two in one or the other direction. Perhaps in some more tony markets in Vancouver you'll see some more dramatic price increases, as there's been fairly strong activity in the more luxury home market."
The sharp increase in property values in Kitimat are a reflection of all industrial growth there, driven largely by a nascent liquefied natural gas, and an ongoing $2.7 billion rebuild of Rio Tinto Alcan's aluminum smelter.
Assessments are likewise up for other northwest communities:
- New Hazelton, 23%
- Terrace, 11%
- Prince Rupert, 9%
The average single-family home in Prince Rupert jumped from $180,000 in 2013 to $196,000 in 2014. Mike Morse, a Prince Rupert-based real estate agent with Re/Max Coast Mountains, told Business in Vancouver the jump in residential value is reflective of the "optimism" in town.
Morse said he was twice as busy in 2013 as he was in 2012 and he attributes that the looming industrial projects planned for both Prince Rupert and Northwest B.C. as a whole.
"There's a good feeling here, with the projects popping up all over the region, people are starting to see what may be coming," said Morse. "It's still speculative, to some degree, but the preparations are happening – and you wouldn't see the investment in real estate if there wasn't that work happening."
Commercial assessments are up nearly 15% in Prince Rupert as well. Morse said investors scooping up properties are driving the jump in commercial property values.
"The commercial realm is being driven by optimism, too," said Morse. "But it is very speculative. Investors are sitting on the properties and waiting."
The largest spike in commercial values in Northwest B.C. is in the District of Port Edward – a tiny town next door to Prince Rupert – where values spike 91% between 2012 and 2013.
Morse said the catalyst there has been a handful of "huge land sales" to companies securing land for the work camps needed if projects such as liquefied natural gas export facilities are built.
"Companies are buying property, preparing for the changes," said Morse. "Again, it's optimism and that's what's driving our market."
As for the District of New Hazelton, where assessments jumped 23%, Re/Max Bulkley Valley agent Ron Lapadat said the increase is likely the result of a few sales "anomalies" inflating the value.
"A couple of better-than-average sales makes it look better than it is," said Lapadat said.
"The District of New Hazelton is such a small market. It's not accurate to say the value has gone up that much."
Lapadat added there have been some "positive influences" on the Hazelton market from the industrial boom in northwest B.C., but not enough to create such an increase.
"We are seeing some interest from the outside on Hazelton because of mining and LNG," said Lapadat. "But not that much."
