Nelson, BC – 06-10-2020: The Kootenay Association of REALTORS® (KAR) reports that a total of 442 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in September 2020, a rise of 52.4 per cent from September 2019. The average MLS® residential price in the region was $395,768, an 11.3 per cent rise from $355,442 recorded in September last year. Total sales dollar volume in September was $174.9 million, a 69 per cent rise over 2019, which stood at $103.1 million.
“The impact we were expecting Covid-19 to bring is not reflecting on the real estate market for several reasons. The first is pent-up demand over the last 5 months, and the fact that people may not want to wait until winter arrives. Moreover, Realtors® in the region have adapted well to changing market scenarios and have been quite successful in minimizing the impact of the pandemic. We are sitting on the cusp of a major transition in our daily lives but real estate buyer behaviour in the Kootenays appears to be unaffected,” says
KAR President Tyler Hancock.
A 52 percent jump in sales over last year, and a 69 percent jump in dollar volume is indicative of the fact that 2020 has been a great year for Kootenay real estate. According to Hancock, “Sales numbers may seem to be the go-to parameter for analysts to determine market health but as a Realtor®, there is more to it than that. Although the numbers may seem extraordinary right now, we must not forget that these are extraordinary times as well. It is great to see sales records being broken, but we cannot use this to forecast how the market will perform as we approach winter.” Inventory levels continue to be low, which may determine market behaviour in the days to come. “I remember mentioning this last month that average prices will reach the $400k mark by September and today we’re at $395k. Against the ongoing trend, if we can get more homes on the market, average prices in the region will stabilize,” adds Hancock.
Year-to-date (YTD), Kootenay MLS® residential sales dollar in September was $932.6 million, 17.2 per cent higher than what it was last year. YTD Residential unit sales were up for the first time this year by 7.6 per cent at 2486 units, while the average MLS® residential price (YTD) was up by 8.9 per cent to $375,141.
Kootenay Association of REALTORS® (KAR)
208 – 402 Baker Street,
Nelson, BC
V1L 4H8
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