Northern BC on pace to end 2024 with 3,900 home sales

A rebounding economy with gains in construction, manufacturing and health care is giving Northern BC’s housing sector a boost in 2024.

According to the fourth-quarter forecast from the BC Real Estate Association, the region is projected to reach 3,900 unit sales this year.

Chief Economist, Brendon Ogmundson told Vista Radio the north is in good shape heading into 2025.

“We are expecting sales to be a little bit higher in 2024 than last year. It’s a little bit stronger than some other regions this year and then picking up even more next year by about 8% to roughly 42-hundred sales.”

“We need to continue to see employment growth, which means we probably need to a natural resource sector that is doing well. With the events from yesterday, we might have some difficulty on the trade front – we will see, there could be some volatility in global trade.”

Ogmundson mentioned if American President-elect Donald Trump follows through with his plan to install tariffs on global exports, it could mean bad news for the housing market.

“If there are 10% tariffs levied and if Canada retaliates with its own 10% tariff, we could see a real slow down in the Canadian economy at the same time as prices are rising. Because of those tariffs, if implemented, the Bank of Canada might not be able to offset the economy, which is a worst-case scenario.”

Lastly, some communities in the northern region are seeing an influx of people from the Interior after being priced out of the housing market.

“Places like Penticton and Kamloops created this domino effect from where Kelowna got very expensive and then Kamloops got really expensive pushing people further out. Places like 100 Mile, Quesnel and Williams Lake are some markets where we are seeing a push from the Interior.”

The average home price in the region is expected to reach just under $427,000.

In Prince George, prices remain a little bit higher at 522-grand.