Real estate sales for the qathet region in November 2022 dropped from sales from November 2021. Both the number and value of sales were down from the previous year.
In the single-family homes category, in November 2022, there were 14 units sold, valued at $8,591,800. This compares to 19 units, valued at $10,811,100 in November 2021.
“Home sales are still trending below averages for this time of year and will likely continue to do so well into next year as the still-unfinished interest rate increases work their way through the economy and our housing market,” said Neil Frost, president of the Powell River-Sunshine Coast Real Estate Board. “New listings are holding up well, showing that sellers still have an appetite to list their homes on the MLS system, and raising inventory levels to the recent highs of late 2019. Prices have come down considerably from their stratospheric peak in spring earlier this year but appear to be stabilizing around current levels.”
Frost said that while statistics keep showing an increase from this time last year, there is a need to recognize prices are down from the peak of late spring and early summer 2022.
For mobile and manufactured homes, in November 2022, there was one unit sold, valued at $130,000, compared to two units, valued at $493,000, in November 2021.
Condos, apartments and duplexes had two sales in November 2022, valued at $979,000, compared to four sales, valued at $2,142,790, in November 2021.
Totals for the residential category indicated 17 sales, valued at $9,700,800, in November 2022, compared to 25 units, valued at $13,446,890, in November 2021.
On the non-residential side, there were six parcels of land, valued at $2,492,800, sold in November 2022, compared to one parcel, valued at $255,000, in November 2021. Also in November 2021, there were two industrial, commercial and institutional properties sold, valued at $1,415,000. There were no such sales in November 2022.
Total non-residential sales point to six units, valued at $2,492,800, in November 2022, compared to three units, valued at $1,670,000, in November 2021.
Grand totals indicate 23 total sales, valued at $12,193,600, in November 2022, compared to 28 units, valued at $15,116,890, in November 2021.
Average monthly selling price for a single-family residence in November 2022 was $613,700, with an average of 48 days on the market. In November 2021, the average price was $586,482, with 54 days on the market. The percentage change year-over-year is 4.6 per cent.
In terms of new listings, there were 28 residential and six non-residential, for a total of 34 new listings for November 2022. There were a total of 129 active residential listings at the end of November 2022, and 60 non-residential listings, for a total of 189 active listings at the end of the month.
Buyer statistics
According to buyer statistics compiled by the local real estate board, in November 2022, there were 11 local buyers and nine out-of-area buyers. In year-to-date statistics, 41.7 percent of buyers have been local and 58.3 percent have been from out-of-area.
One out-of-area buyer was from the lower Sunshine Coast, one was from Vancouver, three were from the Lower Mainland and outlying areas, one was from Squamish, two were from the rest of BC, one was from Alberta and one was from the rest of Canada.
Three of the moves were job-related, eight were for quality of life. Two sales upsized and two downsized.
Interest rates
November did not see a significant change in comparison with previous months and won’t see notable improvements until the Bank of Canada ends its interest rate tightening cycle, according to Brendon Ogmundson, chief economist with BC Real Estate Association.
“A lot has changed in 2022,” stated Ogmundson in a media release. “This time last year, home sales were near a record for November, home prices were accelerating and mortgage rates were less than half of current levels.
“Elevated mortgage rates will continue to constrain sales activity, though with the Bank of Canada nearing the end of its tightening cycle and benchmark bond yields falling, mortgage rate relief may be on the horizon.”
