Single family house sale prices in Houston climbed sharply from 2021 to 2022, indicate the latest statistics from the B.C. Northern Real Estate Board.
From an average price of $226,830 for 2021 when 44 homes sold, the average price increased to $280,402 in 2022 when 42 homes sold, marking a second year of robust sales for the local market.
And the 2021 price was marginally up from the average price of $219,618 in 2020 when 21 homes sold.
All told, 74 properties worth $22.1 million sold in 2022 through the Multiple Listing Service.
The number of sales is less than the 83 properties that sold in 2021 but the dollar value was more than the $18.5 million recorded in 2021.
Neighbouring Smithers ranked second among 15 northern communities surveyed in average house sale prices at $512,228, behind Prince George which was tops at $$524,639 and ahead of third ranking Terrace at $489,882.
The average Smithers selling price for the 70 home sold in 2022 was a considerable jump over the $435,787 for the 88 homes sold in 2021.
The average selling price in Burns Lake in 2022 $269,117 among 17 homes sold compared to the $240,957 selling price for the 26 homes that were sold.
Mackenzie had the lowest average selling price at $183,404 based on 86 units sold, both slight increases over the average price of $177,635 in 2021 when 78 units sold.
Overall, the B.C. Northern Real Estate Board said 2022 sales of 4,250 units marked a 23 per cent decline from 2021 levels but were on par with average sales of the past decade.
Not all jurisdictions featured an increase in average sale prices from 2021 with the real estate board saying the average price in the north was essentially flat in the fourth quarter of 2022 compared to the year before.
“With mortgage rates expected to remain elevated, and a likely slowdown in the economy on the horizon, housing market activity across the north will remain slow in 2023,” the board predicts.
“Slower sales and rising inventory will precipitate a slight decline in home prices, with the average price in the region slipping about one per cent over the next year.”