Kelowna is recovering faster

Kelowna is quite amazing.

It wasn't as medically, socially and economically ravaged by COVID as other cities and it's poised to recover from the pandemic faster than most other jurisdictions.

"In many ways, to say Kelowna and the Central Okanagan have weathered the COVID-19 store well would be an understatement," Andrew Ramlo said during a recent webinar for members of the Okanagan branch of the Urban Development Institute.

"In looking forward, our outlook for the Kelowna and Central Okanagan region is bright."

Ramlo is a demographer, planning consultant and vice-president of intelligence with Vancouver-based Rennie Group, a company that provides analytics, insights and strategies for developers and the real estate industry.

As everyone in Kelowna knows, the real estate market is scorching hot.

Homes are so in demand they generally sell in a matter of days to a buyer who won a bidding war to pay over the list price.

Home sales are up 20% over the decade's average and prices are also up about the same amount.

This trend is linked to the pandemic in that people in larger cities like Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary and Toronto did some soul searching during lockdown.

Many came to the conclusion they could move to a smaller city like Kelowna for a better working-from-home lifestyle and cheaper house prices.

Such desirability has driven up home sales and prices.

It also means there's long-term demand for all kinds of homes at all kinds of price points -- low-rise and highrise apartments and condominiums, townhouses and single-family homes.

It's the kind of news the realtors, developers and bankers in the virtual Kelowna crowd watching the webinar wanted to hear.

"Strong international flows (from immigration and) the flow of smart kids and retirees westwards toward more favourable climates is expected to bolster population growth in high amenity regions like the Central Okanagan," said Ramlo.

His forecast calls for the Central Okanagan, current population: 223,000, to grow by 80,000 residents over the next two decades.

And that's on top of the 70,000 growth over the past 20 years.

The region's growth of 2% in 2029-20 was the fastest in the province.

Making a pink drink pun, Ramlo pointed out not everything is rose in wine country.

"From a housing perspective, Kelowna and the Central Okanagan suffer from a housing availability and affordability crisis, issues that will only grow if the supply of new housing does not keep up with the expected demand," he said.

"From an equity and equity and equality perspective, the city and its broader region also suffer from challenges to diversity and inclusion, widening income gaps and a growing homeless population, all which require careful attention and dedication to address."
Ramlo closed his presentation by urging everyone -- developers, planners, politicians and the general public -- to take advantage of the opportunities and leverage them to address the challenges.