Real Estate Remains Strong

By 250 News

  The BC Northern Real Estate Board reports  home sales  are still high,  although a little off the mark at this time last year.  So far, there have been 3408 sales through the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®)  in the first half of the year compared to 3421 in the same period last year, and 3011 in 2005.  The value of these properties totaled $635.8 million compared to $502 million last year, and $386 million in 2005.   At month end there were 3515 properties of all types on the market, compared to 3669 last year and 4700 in 2005. 

The report does not take into account the  number of private home sales, or sales through  companies like "PropertyGuys.com"

B.C. Northern Real Estate Board President Glen Holling  says  the market remains strong “Almost all our communities are seeing a continuation of the strong market we saw last year.  Prices have stabilized in most places and we have a healthy number of properties available for buyers to choose from.  We are fortunate that there are affordable housing choices for the average family in the north.”

Here is the complete  report:

FRASER FORT GEORGE REGION

Prince George:  952 properties of all types, worth $197.2 million have changed hands in the first 6 months of 2007 in the City of Prince George through the MLS® operated by the BC Northern Real Estate Board.  This compares with the same period last year when 962 properties worth a total of $153 million had sold.

 In the west part of the Bowl area of the City, the median price of the 174 detached single family homes that have sold on MLS® was $220,000 with an average time to sell of 31 days compared to a median of $167,485 last year and 25 days to sell. 

In the Bowl area east of the Bypass, the 124 detached single family houses that sold had a median price of $175,000 and took an average of 31 days to sell, compared to a median of $121,000 and 51 days to sell last year.

In the northern part of the City commonly referred to as “the Hart”, 110 detached single family homes sold with a median price of $265,000 and took 31 days on average to sell, compared to $195,000 and 36 days to sell last year.

In the southwest sector, 136 detached single family houses have sold since January, with a median of $290,000. These houses were on the market for an average of 37 days.   This compared with the median of $223,000 and 35 days to sell last year in this time period. 

At month-end there were a total of 741 properties of all types on the MLS® within City limits, compared to 657 last year at this time.

Mackenzie:  27 sales so far this year compared to 24 in the same period in 2006. The total value of these properties was $3.2 million this year and $1.8 million last year. On average, detached single family houses in Mackenzie took 79 days to sell this year, down from 87 days in 2006. At month end there were a total of 36 properties in all categories for sale, compared to 26 last year at this time. 

CARIBOO REGION

100 Mile House and area: A total of 385 properties of all types worth $68 million have been sold by REALTORS® in this area since January. This compares with 429 properties worth $57.5 million sold by this time last year. Half of the single-family homes on lots less than an acre in size sold for $195,000 or less, although the average selling price of the 95 homes that sold in this time period was $217,654 (see chart following). The average time it takes for a single family home to sell has dropped to 57 days from 91 a year ago. At month end there were a total of 404 properties (of all types) available in this area on the MLS® - down from 446 last year.

Williams Lake:  The REALTORS® in the Williams Lake area have been responsible for the sale of 295 properties (all classifications) through the MLS® since January, compared to 198 by the end of June last year.  The value of these properties was $55 million, compared to $27 million in 2006. For single family homes on properties less than an acre (see chart following) half of the homes sold for less than $192,000 and the average selling price was $215,574. The average time to sell this year has been 68 days, compared to 89 days last year.  60 parcels of vacant land have changed hands in the first half of 2007, up from 30 parcels in 2006. At month end there were 291 properties of all types available for sale on the MLS® down from 377 last year. 

Quesnel:  In the Quesnel area, REALTORS® reported 270 sales of properties of all types in the first 6 months of this year, up from 248 in the same time frame in 2006.  The value of these properties was $37.5 million, up from $29.5 million last year. Half of the 125 single family houses on lot sizes of less than an acre sold for $149,500 or less, although the mathematical average price (see chart following) was higher. These homes have sold on average in 54 days, compared to 70 days in 2006.  There have been 37 pieces of residential land sold this year, compared to 30 last year. At month end there were a total of 298 properties in the Quesnel area available for sale on MLS®, compared to 309 last year on June 30^th.

NORTHWEST REGION

Prince Rupert:  sold a total of 131 properties worth $23.7 million through the MLS® this year, compared to 113 properties worth $14.3 million by the end of June last year. The accompanying chart shows comparable prices for single family homes over last year, but the median price this year (half sold for less) for the 100 homes sold was $152,000. At month end there were 172 properties of all types for sale, compared to 179 on June 30th last year.

Terrace: sold a total of 192 properties of all types worth $27.8 million so far this year. Last year in the same period 176 properties with a total value of $21.5 million sold. Half of the 97 single family homes that sold through the MLS® since January (see chart following) have sold for $164,500 or less. The number of days these houses took to sell dropped from an average of  58 days last year to 38 days this year. At month end there were 204 properties in all categories for sale, down from 275 on June 30^th last year.

Kitimat:   80 properties worth a total of $9.7 million have sold through MLS® since January 1^st, compared to 92 properties (all classifications) worth $9.8 million last year. The median price for the 56 houses sold in Kitimat was $115,000, virtually unchanged from 2006 (see chart following for average prices) but the number of days to sell has dropped in half from an average of 89 days a year ago to 45 this year. At month end there were 91 properties of all types available for purchase, compared to 78 last year. 

BULKLEY VALLEY-OMENICA

Houston:  22 properties with a total value of $2.8 million have changed hands so far this year, compared to 22 properties worth $1.9 million in 2006. As of June 30^th there were 36 properties on MLS® in the Houston area.

Smithers: a total of 212 sales of properties in all classifications since January this year, up from 163 last year in the same period. The value of this real estate totaled $31 million, compared to $21 million in 2006.  Half of the 76 single family homes that sold, sold for less than $169,000.  At month end there were 164 properties of all types available on MLS®, down from 301 a year ago. 

Burns Lake:  59 properties worth $6.5 million in total have been reported sold so far this year compared to 69 properties worth $6.9 million for the period last year. (see chart following for average prices for single family houses)   At month end there were 132 properties of all types available on MLS® compared to 124 on June 30th last year.

Vanderhoof:  In the Vanderhoof area, REALTORS® have reported 96 properties worth a total of $12.5 million sold this year so far.  The average days taken to sell a single family house has dropped from 97 last year to 59 days in 2007. (see chart following for average prices)   At month end there were 83 properties of all types for sale through MLS® in the Vanderhoof/Fraser Lake are, down from 136 last year on June 30th.

Fort St. James:  19 properties worth $1.25 million have sold in the first half of 2007, compared to 24 properties worth $2.7 million that took place in the same time period in 2006.  9 of these sales were vacant land, 3 houses on acreage, and 3 detached single family houses. As of June 30th, there were 39 properties of all types available for sale in the Fort St. James area compared to 49 a year ago.

NORTHERN REGION

Fort St. John:   399 properties of all types sold in the first 6 months of this year, with a total value of $100.2 million. This is down from last year’s 476 properties worth $97.5 million. In addition to the 206 single family homes that have sold, 27 homes on acreage, 21 half duplexes, 31 manufactured homes in parks and 37 manufactured homes on land have changed hands this year. For detached single family houses on lots of less than an acre, half of the sales in the Fort St. John area were under $279,000 (see  chart for average prices), and the average time to sell was 39 days, compared to 54 days last year. At month end there were 396 properties of all types on MLS® in the Fort St. John area, compared to 251 a year ago.

Fort Nelson: In Fort Nelson, the REALTORS® sold 66 properties in the first 6 months this year, with a total value of $14 million through MLS®, down from last year’s 89 sales worth $16.6 million. Half of the 32 homes that have sold so far this year, sold for less than $219,000 and took, on average, 67 days to sell, down from 95 days last year.  As of June 30^th there were 129 properties of all types available for sale through MLS® in the Fort Nelson area compared to 110 last year.

Average Selling Price (Year to Date)

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