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Kootenay real estate market emerging from grip of pandemic, says KAR president

Out of region interest still strong; prices continue to rise
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A house is displayed for sale on Tuesday, July 14, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Kootenay real estate continues to be attractive to out of region buyers, says President of the Kootenay Association of Realtors Chuck Bennett.

And Bennett says that even though average prices keep rising, he doesn’t see it having a negative impact on the way the region is perceived among buyers.

“Residential properties in our area continue to provide great value, even as average prices continue to rise. The reality is that affordability in real estate will eventually depend on the steps taken by the government to improve supply of homes. Steadily increasing average prices on the other hand, is indicative of the constant high demand for Kootenay homes. In fact, since our region garnered a lot of attention from buyers during the pandemic and we set sales records; the Kootenay region remains among the most preferred areas for people who want good value for the money they spend on their real estate.”

However, he says that as long as inventory remains fairly low, and that isn’t predicted to change much for a year or so, upward pressure on prices will remain.

The latest stats for September 2021, report a total of 351 residential unit sales in the east and west Kootenay, which is a drop of 23.0 per cent from the same period last year. However the average residential prices rose to $468,136, a 17.2 per cent rise. The total sales dollar volume was 10 per cent lower than last September at $164.3 million.

With another 351 sales, Bennett says the region has remained quite consistent over the past few months.

“Our seasonal pattern indicates that on average, we sell about 330 – 350 units per month. Our area continues to present a unique value proposition for buyers coming from other regions, keeping our sales figures higher than 200 in general. Although our sales volume has increased this year, we’ve seen our market follow the usual sales pattern that we normally see, and I’m glad that the market has safely emerged from the pandemic’s grip.”



Carolyn Grant

About the Author: Carolyn Grant

I have been with the Kimberley Bulletin since 2001 and have enjoyed every moment of it.
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