There have been 36 properties sold for a combine $4.2 million in the Burns Lake in the first half of 2014 through the Multiple Listings Service (MLS), according to a report from the B.C. Northern Real Estate Board (BCNREB).
That number is an increase on property sales in Burns Lake at the same time last year.
In 2013, there had been 31 properties sold for a total of $3.7 million.
At the end of June there were 132 properties in the Burns Lake area available for purchase.
“Business has always been good for me,” Dennis Bock, Sales Representative for Royal LePage said.
Other communities in the Bulkley-Nechako region have experienced a similar growth in the real estate market compared to last year.
In Smithers, 134 properties sold for a total of $30.3 million in the first six months of this year compared to 124 properties for a total of $31.8 million in 2013.
At the end of June 278 properties were available in Smithers on the MLS
In Vanderhoof, 62 properties were sold for a total of $10.3 million in the first half of this year compared to 42 properties sold for a total of $9.7 million in the first half of 2013.
There were 159 properties available for purchase on the MLS in Vanderhoof at the end of June.
And Fort St. James saw 18 properties sell for a total of $3.4 million in the first half of 2014 compared to 10 properties selling for a total of $2.3 million.
Fort St. James had 66 properties available on the MLS at the end of June.
The only community in the Bulkley-Nechako region that saw a downturn in the real estate market was Houston.
This year, in the first six months, 16 properties totalling $2.3 million were sold in Houston compared to 27 properties valuing $4.5 million over the same time period in 2013.
As of June 30 there were 76 properties available through the MLS in the Houston area.
Numbers for the BCNREB are up across the board.
In the first half of 2014, 2637 properties have been sold through the MLS totalling $672 million compared to 2363 properties sold through the MLS totalling $579.9 million at the same point in 2013.
“On average, most markets in the B.C. Northern Real Estate Board’s area remain strong. Overall sales activity is up 25 per cent from last year while inventory continues to decline,” Ken Laursen, President of the BCNREB said.
“Sales over active listings are at 18 per cent which puts the board as a whole into a seller’s market, though some areas, notably in the South, remained balanced.”
Average selling price of a residential detached home in Burns Lake in 2014 is $114,066.
That is compared to $153,392 in 2013 and $143,337 in 2012 respectively.
It should be noted that average selling price only gives indication of market trends.
