Real estate sales here through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) dipped for the first three months of this year compared to the same period in 2019.
Six properties sold worth $1.2 million compared 11 properties selling in 2019 at worth of $2 million.
Of those properties sold from January to March this year, three were single family dwellings at an average price of $232,550.
At the end of March there were 25 properties of all types available for sale through MLS compared to 27 for the same period last year.
In Burns Lake, four properties sold worth $456,000 for the first three months of this year compared to 16 properties worth $2.3 million for the same period in 2019.
Of those properties selling this year, one was a single family dwelling carrying a price of $80,000. That’s compared to five single family dwellings being sold for the first three months of 2019 at an average price of $144,300.
At the end of March there were 80 properties of all types available for sale through MLS in the Burns Lake area compared to 87 last year.
Across the north the BC Northern Real Estate Board noted a 13 per cent fall of properties sold for the first three months of this year compared to the first quarter of 2019.
The drop to 753 sales worth $217.389 million compared to 876 sales worth $257.043 million was attributed to declines in the forestry, mining and oil sectors.
Generally speaking, however, sales activity was higher along Hwy16 in the northwest than in other regions such as the northeast and down into the Cariboo.
But there was also a decline in active listings and as a result, an overall increase of one per cent in sale prices to $298,811, the board added in a release the first week of April.
And looking ahead in gauging the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the board is predicting a continued decline.
“We expect MLS sales to continue to decline in the second quarter of 2020 due to the economic standstill brought on by COVID-19, which will likely also lead to significant investment projects such as LNG and BC Hydro to scale back,” the board stated.
“The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause significant challenges to everyone in our society,” said BC Northern Real Estate Board president Shawna Kinsley in the release.
“Our members are committed to doing their part to ensure communities stay safe. Real estate is an essential service. Realtors are following all orders and guidance from the public health authority.
That includes stopping open houses.