KELOWNA
We, here in Kelowna are still in a buyers market.
The last third of May had more activity than the beginning of the month. This seems to be consistent with the reports from other parts of Canada. On the other hand, we also experienced one of the slowest months in the last 20 years. Our percentage of sales to listing ratio is still well below 10% which is very low compared to other major cities. This means we are in an absolute fantastic market for buyers. We are looking forward to a more balanced market. This will happen as soon as the sales to listing ratio changes up again which has already happened in other areas. In May, 6 properties sold over $1 Million.

The Bank of Canada interest rate has been left unchanged. A rate increase is not expected before the fall.

Kelowna CMHC Report
"Expect existing home prices to edge up by 3% as demand improves and the supply of listings is drawn down"
Full report: Spring edition of Kelowna CMHC Report

Did you know?
As per the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board in 2010 'luxury' home sales in Westside Vancouver ($3 million plus) and 'luxury' condos in Richmond ($2 million plus), were 164 sales and 122 homes or more than 74% of new owners came from China.
Five years ago, two-thirds of Canadian wood went south of the border. Today, US sales account for barely one-third of exports.
In 2011, Beijing plans to spend CNY1.3 trillion (US$197 billion) and build 10 million housing units and aims for 36 million units by 2015.
In the last two years, 24 lumber mills have reopened in BC, some 10,000 forest-sector workers were called back. The Port of Prince Rupert is North America's nearest access point to key Asian markets, shaving two days off of traditional shipping routes.
Source: Landcor

Remember, Good Deals Are Not Found, They Are Made.
 

Major Cities Report
Victoria: Real Estate Sales Steady in May
Sales so far this year are running nearly 21% behind last year's levels. The number of property sales throughout Greater Victoria in May showed little change compared to April, while overall prices showed some softening. A total of 572 homes and other properties sold in May. There is plenty of choice now on the market for buyers with 4,857 properties available for sale at the end of May - up from 4,561 properties available at the end of April. The average price for single-family homes sold in Greater Victoria last month was $628,462. There were 26 single family home sales of over $1 million in May.

Vancouver: Greater Vancouver housing market holds steady and favours sellers in May.
With a sales to active listings ratio of 23%, conditions continue to favour sellers in the Greater Vancouver housing market, but activity has eased away from the near record-setting pace we saw in March . The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver reports that residential property sales of detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver reached 3,377 in May 2011, a 7% increase compared to the 3,156 sales in May 2010 and a 4.7% increase compared to the 3,225 sales in April 2011. The MLSLink® Housing Price Index (HPI) benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver over the last 12 months increased 6.2% to $627,568 in May 2011 from $590,662 in May 2010. Of all residential properties sold on the MLS® in Greater Vancouver in 2011 to date 21% sold for $1-million or higher and 20% sold for $350,000 or lower. While 77% of the properties that sold for over $1-million were located in West Vancouver, the Westside of Vancouver or Richmond.

Calgary: Inner City Housing Market Leads In Sales
Consumers are looking for shorter commute times to work and easy access to a wider range of services provided by these inner city communities. Year-to-date residential sales in the inner city grew nearly 4%, outperforming the city wide average. City of Calgary residential sales totaled 1,816 in May 2011, a 2% increase in volume over May 2010. The average price for single family homes in May 2011 was $489,482.

Edmonton: Local Housing Market in one word: Up
The local economy is picking up, the demand for labour is increasing but the national situation is keeping interest rates low. Prediction remains for increasing prices and sales through the summer ahead as originally forecasted. The average price of a single family detached home in May was $380,545, up a quarter of a percent from last month. There were 1,857 residential sales in May (up 24.9% from April) and inventory increased from 7,715 properties to 8,180.

Toronto: Sales and Price Increase in May
Toronto reported 10,046 sales in May 2011 – up 6% compared to May 2010. This result was the second best on record for May under the current Toronto Real Estate Board service area. The number of new listings in May, at 16,076, was down 15% compared to last year. Homes were on the market for an average of 23 days and sold for an average price of $485,520– up 9% compared to $446,593 in May 2010.