Almost 100 fewer properties were sold in Prince Rupert during the first three quarters of 2015 compared to the same time in 2014 according to numbers released today by the B.C. Northern Real Estate Board.
A total of 168 properties worth $39.7 million was sold through to the end of September compared to 263 homes worth $55.4 million through to the end of September 2014, a drop of 95 properties and $15.7 million.
Th average selling price of single family homes, however, continues to greatly exceed the value realized in the past several years. The average price of the 126 homes sold in Prince Rupert so far in 2015 is $248,865, up $34,729 from the same time period in 2014 and up $55,174 from the average selling price at the end of September 2012. Homes in 2015 have taken an average of 94 days to sell.
The decline in property sales is not unique to Prince Rupert in the context of the Northwest. Terrace saw its sales drop from 288 properties worth $72.5 million in 2014 to 225 properties worth $57.6 million in 2015 and Kitimat saw its sales drop from 128 properties worth $35.9 million to 89 properties worth $24.4 million. Of all the communities east of Prince George, only Fort St. James, Burns Lake and Houston saw an increase in the number of homes sold in 2015.
There are currently 179 properties for sale in Prince Rupert through the Multiple Listing Service.