Housing activity in Prince George saw a noticeable decline in 2022 according to BC Northern Real Estate Board.
1323 properties with a combined value of 606 million were sold in the northern capital last year – down from the 1653 homes worth $684 million dollars that were taken off the market in 2021.
Vice-President, Breanne Cote told MyPGNow.com there were two reasons for the drop.
“Interest rates were at an all-time low for the last couple of years. When the government hiked up interest rates, that slowed the market down. The second reason for the decline is just coming from record numbers the previous year (2021) and everything has to settle down at some point and that is what we are seeing happen.”
In addition, investment properties did not come off the market as quickly as a result.
Despite this, single-detached homes are still being sold at a pretty healthy clip.
“Investors are kind of taking a step back for the time being just because of interest rates. When interest rates were really low, people were taking advantage of that – but, single family or single-detached are still moving really well. Most of the people who still need a home to live in are likely to make a purchase,” added Cote.
The average selling price for a single-detached home in Prince George came in at $524,639 – a spike of over $66,000 when compared to 2021 where it was $458,560.
However, Cote noted the highest-priced sales took place very early in the year.
“The highest prices were at the beginning of the year and then things settled down towards the end of the year. We then prices similar to what we saw at the end of 2021. Prices haven’t come down a lot but they have come down a little bit from that peak.”
In the area west of the by-pass, half of the 236 single-family homes sold in 2022, went for less than $460,000.
In addition, 26 apartment units and 50 townhouses changed hands last year. As of December 31st, there were 27 single-family homes available compared to 15 at the same time in 2021.
East of the by-pass 48 apartment units, 13 half-duplexes, and 37 townhouses came off the market. The 177 single-family homes sold had a median value of $410,000. At the end of December, there were 39 single-family homes available for sale compared with 10 at the end of 2021.
In the northern part of the city (The Hart), 17 homes on acreage, 35 manufactured homes in parks, and a further 40 manufactured homes on land changed hands in 2022.
Of the 182 single-family homes sold, half sold for less than $550,000.
As of December 31st, 22 single-family homes are available, a spike from just 6 at the end of 2021.
In the southwest sector (College Heights) 11 half-duplexes, 28 townhouses, 8 homes on acreage, 19 manufactured homes in parks, and a further 8 manufactured homes on land sold in 2022.
Half of the 225 single-family homes that came off the market went for less thab $607,500.
At year-end, there were 38 single-family homes listed, compared with 15 at the end of 2021.
Across the region, 5001 property sales worth $2 billion were tallied in 2022, down from last year’s 6669 sales worth $2.4 billion.
In addition, home sales in the BC Northern region totaled 4,250 units last year, a 23 percent decline from 2021’s near-record pace, but on par with the average level of sales activity over the past 10 years.
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