With our ever changing Real Estate Market in British Columbia, Buyers and Sellers are continuing to keep an anxious eye on what is to come during the next year.

There's no doubt about it the B 20 stress test on Mortgages, has had a dramatic effect on housing sales, and many agents, including myself, are seeing deals collapse due to Buyers being unable to obtaining Financing.

This is one of the reasons we are seeing an increase in Demand for homes with suites to provide that valuable added income which will allow some local buyers to buy homes normally out of their price range.

The latest BC Real Estate Association Forecast is now published, and here are the details that effect Kelowna and the Central Okanagan Area.

MLS® home sales in the Thompson-Okanagan region, which is serviced by the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB), the South Okanagan Real Estate Board (SOREB) and the Kamloops & District Real Estate Board (KADREA), fell a combined 17 percent in 2018 and home sales...

Last months Buyers Survey Report is now out, provided by the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB).

Less activity by First Time Buyers, but more people Downsizing and Investing.

Families were busier Buying, but there were less out of area buyers. I suspect this is due to many have greater difficulty Selling their own homes, as many areas are struggling with sales at the moment.

Property Type:

19.89% First Time Purchase (down from 23.48% in April)

17.74% Move Up Purchase (down from 19.61%)

19.62% Relocating to Similar Property Type (up from 16.85%)

11.02% Revenue/Investment (up from 8.29%)

19.09% Downsizing (up from 15.75%)

7.53% Moving from Single-family Home to Strata Unit (up from 5.52%)

2.96% Moving from Strata Property to Single Family Home (up from 2.76%)

3.76% Recreational Property (down from 5.25%)

1.34% Retirement Home/Seniors Community (down from 2.49%)

Buyer Type (Family Dynamic):

27.03% Two Parent family/children (up from 22.47% in April)

24.86% Couple without children (down...

I was reading this article today on the Canadian REW Site and thought it was too important not to share.

Please note that I am not a Tax Accountant, and I strongly urge you to get advice from your own Tax Accountant, on this issue!

My thanks to the Author, Kara Kuryllowicz, for bringing it to our attention.

Vancouver empty nesters Steve and Barbara’s beloved 3,500 square foot heritage home with spectacular ocean views is now leased four to six months a year while they assess life in a 700 sq. ft. luxury downtown condo.

In Toronto, Jody rents her Cabbagetown house to neighbours tackling extensive renovations as well as professionals working short-term contracts. The two- to six-month rentals cover her mortgage and operating costs, such as insurance, property tax and utilities and she enjoys summers at the cottage.

Like so many homeowners that rent through AirBnB and comparable websites, Steve, Barbara and Jody consider them their principal residences because they live there...

Well, it's now June and the Kelowna Real Estate Market is in full swing - or is it? It certainly doesn't feel like it.

Overall, the May Real Estate market has been one of the quieter ones I have experienced, in a while. For example, there are usually lots of Parents looking for Condos, ready for the Students attending UBCO, and I have only just started to see inquiries and sales, with more showings in the last week.

There is certainly plenty of choice in the U District, and Condo sales in Quail Ridge, also seem subdued.

In other areas of the market, it remains 'patchy', as Buyers are convinced prices are going to soften further.

Certainly, at the 'higher-end' of the market, they could be right, but I do sense that some Sellers will wait, rather than list lower.

Kelowna & Central Okanagan Real Estate Sales May 2019.

The latest Buyers Survey Results have now been published for the Kelowna Real Estate Market and Central Okanagan Area for April 2019.

Points of interest this month -:

- 61.37% of Buyers were local compared to 56.2% in April 2018.

- 15.07% of Buyers came from the Lower Mainland compared to 20.2% April 2018 - highlighting the effects of the dip in their Real Estate Markets.

- 9.59% of Buyers came from Alberta, which was up from 9.1% last year.

Here is the full summary below.

Overview Property Type:

23.48% First Time Purchase (down from 24.00% in March)

19.61% Move Up Purchase (up from 19.11%)

16.85% Relocating to Similar Property Type (up from 15.56%)

8.29% Revenue/Investment (up from 8.00%)

15.75% Downsizing (up from 14.67%)

5.52% Moving from Single-family Home to Strata Unit (up from 4.89%)

2.76% Moving from Strata Property to Single Family Home (up from 2.67%)

5.25% Recreational Property (up from 4.89%)

2.49% Retirement Home/Seniors Community (up from 0.89%)

Buyer Type (Family Dynamic):...

The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 6,652 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in April, a decline of 18.9 per cent from the same month last year.

The average MLS® residential price in the province was $685,304, a decline of 6.2 per cent from April 2018. Total sales dollar volume was $4.6 billion, a 23.9 per cent decline from the same month last year.

“BC home sales were essentially unchanged from March on a seasonally adjusted basis,” said BCREA Chief Economist Cameron Muir. “Prospective home buyers continue to grapple with the decline in their purchasing power caused by federal government changes to mortgage policy.” Total MLS® residential active listings increased 33.6 per cent to 38,672 units compared to the same month last year. The ratio of sales to active residential listings declined from 28.4 per cent to 17.2 per cent over the same period.

Year-to-date, BC residential...