Let’s talk about what happened in the Whistler and Pemberton Real Estate markets in May.
In Whistler, there were 59* sales in May, remaining relatively inline with the 55* sales we saw in April and just above the five-year average of 57.4* for the month of May. May saw the lowest inventory levels so far this year with 194* units on the market. Buyers who have seen what they want come market are acting quickly to secure their properties, reflected by a multitude of multiple offer situations and a significant reduction of days on market across single family, townhomes and condos both month-over-month and year-over-year.
It was a busy month in Pemberton with 15* sales in May, including 5 single family, 2 townhouses and 7 condos. This is the second highest month of sales Pemberton has seen since the heat of the pandemic market in 2021 and included one sale over the $2M mark. Inventory currently sits at 56*units, which is just above the 1-year inventory average. Please note this figure includes 20 vacant lots, which makes only 36 units either near or move in ready.
From an economic perspective, the Bank of Canada raised interest rates by an additional 0.25% on June 7 (following suit with the US announcement on May 3) because of stronger than expected Q1 GDP growth and excess demand in the economy, preventing the desired decline in core inflation. There is also speculation that the next announcement on July 12 will bring an additional quarter point increase. It will be interesting to see whether this increase and future expectations will impact the recent consumer confidence we have seen return to and fuel the housing market as it will impact a variety of lending products.
We are expecting to see a typical summer market slowdown, with the usual increase in activity in August and September for the winter season. However, the summer market this year could be driven by the buyers waiting in the wings for the right product. Stay on top of what is coming to market, there may be some opportunities to be had. If buyers see “the one”, they may want to act.
The WREC Management Team.
