The Market

Trump, tariffs and the federal election have managed to cool the market. Not kill it, just cool it. Spring, typically the popular time for sellers to list, is no different this year but sales have slowed. Price reductions now dominate the daily MLS. 

This month and June are setting up to be a consequential indicator of what's to come in the housing market. With a "strong" minority, general consensus is that the federal government can now move forward in navigating through the demands of President Trump, hopefully bringing some clarity as to what the future holds. Clarity means more certainty and certainty is what buyers need to move forward.

In the South Okanagan it seemed every 10 years the housing market hit a peak then would start to gradually slide. It happened in 1988/89, then nine years later in 1997/98, again in 2007/08 and yet again in 2017/18. It was like clockwork.

As happened throughout the world, people flooded out of large cities to smaller communities, upending predictable market cycles and accelerating market values. Subsequent high interest rates cooled that surge but, as rates come back down, the market in the South Okanagan has been responding. 

Now that the threat of the United States imposing tariffs is coming to fruition, and job security becomes front and center for many Canadians, the anticipation is market activity will slow or even pause. A further drop in interest rates may offset that but only time will tell. 

BUYERS: If you're buying and you're confident that you won't be negatively affected by economic changes, the next near- to middle-future could be a great opportunity to find that ideal property. 

SELLERS: As a seller, if you absolutely need to sell, see the next little while as a window of opportunity to attract a buyer in what could be a shrinking pool of qualified buyers. Price sharply, this is not the time to 'test' the market.