The typical house price in Kamloops is climbing ever closer to the $700,000 milestone.
In June, the average selling price of a single-family home in the city was a record-high $680,815, up from $670,640 in May and $656,238 in April, according to figures from the Kamloops and District Real Estate Association.
Over the past year, the average selling price of a fully-detached home in the region has jumped an astonishing 28.5%.
That means in June 2020, the average selling price of a single-family home was $529,800.
So, if you live in a typical house, which is generally considered to be a well-maintained, four bedroom home in a nice neighbourhood, your place is worth $151,000 more this year than last.
That technically makes your $151,000 richer.
But, of course, it's all relative.
After all, if you sell your house right now for a pretty penny, you'll also have to pay a record-high price for anything else you buy in Kamloops.
While skyrocketing prices are good for homeowners' net worth, it makes it nigh on impossible for lower-income or first-time buyers to get into the market.
A total of 190 single-family homes sold in Kamloops and district in June, just a 1.6% increase from June 2020.
However, there were 124 multi-family sales (which includes townhouses, condominiums, duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes) in June, a 28% jump from the same month last year.
It's all an indication the market is settling into summer and post-pandemic pace.
"June sales figures are lower than we expected, but the hot market was bound to calm down at some point," said association president Chelsea Mann, a realtor at Century 21 Desert Hills in Kamloops.
"Summer months usually see a drop and then the market picks up again in the fall. I look at our market performance with comfort and believe it is more a sign of stability and recovery since the pandemic."
The province reopening after COVID is also a positive and will set the pace for real estate activity for the rest of 2021 and 2022, according to Mann.
Although COVID didn't really hamper the Kamloops market other than the strictest months of lockdown.
Otherwise, the pandemic prompted people to buy bigger and better homes and for those from other parts of the country with money to move to lifestyle destinations like Kamloops to live.
Rock-bottom mortgage interest rates and low inventory of homes also pushed up demand and prices.
Multi-family home sales in Kamloops and district in June jumped 36.6% over the same month last year.
The average selling price of a townhouse in June was $459,427, a condo $314,113.
