Photo: Contributed
We are now in what is considered a buyer friendly real estate market.
I thought I should follow-up the sales data from my last column with some history, starting back in 2021, to see how we got to where we are inthe current real estate market.
The housing markets in Kamloops and the Okanagan region, including Kelowna, transitioned from tight sellers’ markets in 2021 to buyer-friendly conditions by the first quarter of 2025, according to Canadian Real Estate Association data.
Below, I analyze year-over-year changes in inventory ratios (months of inventory), average sale prices, and average days on market for detached, semi-detached, townhouses, apartment, and manufactured homes, highlighting market trends from 2021 to the first quarter of 2025.
2021: Peak prices, tight inventory
Kamloops:
• Inventory: Low, 1.60 townhouses to 4.50 manufactured, detached at 2.49.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $667,772, semi-detached: $500,991, townhouses: $474,090, apartments: $339,204 and manufactured homes: $201,521.
• Average DOM: Detached: 42.97, semi-detached: 42.99, townhouses: 35.30, apartments: 57.35 and manufactured homes: 49.07.
Okanagan:
• Inventory: Tight, 1.76 townhouses to 2.66 detached.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $917,614, semi-detached: $633,866, townhouses: $563,270, apartments: $421,212 and manufactured homes: $241,816.
• Average DOM: Detached: 41.71, semi-detached: 40.15, townhouses: 41.98, apartments: 46.88 and manufactured homes: 52.46.
2022: Price peaks, inventory grows
Kamloops:
• Inventory: Increased to 4.17 manufactured to 11.25 apartments; detached at 8.28.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $760,082 (+14%), semi-detached: $591,737 (+18%), townhouses: $560,438 (+18%), apartments: $382,621 (+13%) and manufactured homes: $231,822 (+15%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 44.33, semi-detached: 45.53, townhouses: 32.03, apartments: 47.72 and manufactured homes: 44.87.
Okanagan:
• Inventory: Rose to 5.53 (townhouses) to 21.33 (semi-detached), detached at 9.15.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $1,030,390 (+12%), semi-detached: $721,471 (+14%), townhouses: $647,732 (+15%), apartments: $501,527 (+19%) and manufactured homes: $273,478 (+13%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 42.58, semi-detached: 38.82, townhouses: 36.74, apartments: 39.66 and manufactured homes: 47.28.
2023: Cooling prices, buyer’s market emerges
Kamloops:
• Inventory: Higher, 2.71 (semi-detached) to 8.80 manufactured; detached at 6.93.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $706,449 (-7%), semi-detached: $558,119 (-6%), townhouses: $515,152 (-8%), apartments: $382,239 (-0.1%) and manufactured homes: $241,806 (+4%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 60.65, semi-detached: 53.27, townhouses: 49.25; apartments: 62.02 and manufactured homes: 56.95.
Okanagan:
• Inventory: Elevated, 11.03 (detached) to 16.00 (semi-detached).
• Average sale prices: Detached: $982,681 (-5%), semi-detached: $675,124 (-6%), townhouses: $618,088 (-5%), apartments: $469,169 (-6%) and manufactured homes: $280,017 (+2%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 59.22, semi-detached: 52.10, townhouses: 51.94, apartments: 59.06 and manufactured homes: 64.69.
2024: Stabilizing buyer’s market
Kamloops:
• Inventory: Stable, 5.86 (semi-detached) to 6.67 (townhouses) and detached at 6.22.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $723,819 (+2%), semi-detached: $564,358 (+1%), townhouses: $543,489 (+5%), apartments: $375,402 (-2%), manufactured homes: $244,795 (+1%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 61.77, semi-detached: 46.26, townhouses: 53.53, apartments: 62.75 and manufactured homes: 62.69.
Okanagan:
• Inventory: High, 7.00 (semi-detached) to 10.20 (detached).
• Average sale prices: Detached: $964,178 (-2%), semi-detached: $696,382 (+3%), townhouses: $616,931 (-0.2%), apartments: $455,783 (-3%) and manufactured homes: $286,628 (+2%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 68.43, semi-detached: 68.44, townhouses: 61.61, apartments: 65.09 and manufactured homes: 75.24.
2025 Q1: Continued buyer’s market
Kamloops:
• Inventory: High, 5.50 (detached) to 17.00 (apartments), townhouses at 6.00 and apartments at 17.00.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $708,177 (-2%), semi-detached: $564,250 (0%), townhouses: $543,000 (0%), apartments: $374,500 (-0.2%) and manufactured homes: $246,300 (+0.6%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 63.50, semi-detached: 47.00, townhouses: 54.00, apartments: 64.00 and manufactured homes: 63.50.
Okanagan:
• Inventory: Elevated, 6.00 (townhouses) to 11.50 (apartments) and detached at 8.50.
• Average sale prices: Detached: $950,000 (-1.5%), semi-detached: $695,000 (-0.2%), townhouses: $615,000 (-0.3%), apartments: $454,000 (-0.4%) and manufactured homes: $287,500 (+0.3%).
• Average DOM: Detached: 70.00, semi-detached: 69.00, townhouses: 62.00, apartments: 66.00 and manufactured homes: 76.00.
Townhouse prices in the Okanagan have dropped from their peak by about $32,000 and in Kamloops they are down about $17,000. Apartments in the Okanagan are down about $47,000 and in Kamloops $8,000. Days on market for apartments increased about 65% from the lows in the Okanagan and Kamloops area of about 39%. With selling prices dow, it takes longer on average to sell. That won’t come as a surprise if you have been trying to sell your home lately.
We are in what might be considered the “trough” or “contraction” part of a real estate cycle. Usually this is followed by an expansion, with more demand and raising prices. How long it will be before the expansion phase kicks in is, of course, the big question. Only time will tell.
If you have suggestions for other real estate-related articles, please email me at [email protected].
This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.