Every month the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB) does a survey to get a better understanding of buyers. Below is a summary of the survey that shows what types of properties are being bought, the family dynamic of buyers and where the buyers are coming from. If you have any questions about this survey or any other Kelowna real estate stats, call The Dion-Ivans Real Estate Team!

JULY SURVEY SUMMARY

Property Type:
29.2% of purchases were by Move-Up Buyers (down from 30.9% in June)  
14.9% by First Time Buyers  (down from 20.7%)
12.9% moving from Single Family Home to Strata Unit (same as June)
10.2% buying Recreation Property  (up from 4.3%) * 
9.2% buying Revenue/Investment Property  (same as June) 
6.8% moving into Retirement Home/Seniors Community  (up from 5.3%) *
4.1% moving from Strata property to Single Family Home (up from 2.8%)  *

* During June, there were increases in purchases by recreation property buyers, retirees moving into seniors communities, and buyers moving from strata properties to single family homes compared to the previous month.

Buyer Type (Family Dynamic):
26.7% Couple without Children (up from 24.9% in June) **
24.7% Two Parent Family/Children (down from 28.4%)
23.0% Empty Nester/Retired (up from 21.3%) **
13.0% Single Female (up from 11.9%) **
9.7% Single Male (down from 9.9%)
2.7% Single Parent with Children (same as June)

** There were more purchases by couples without children, empty nessters/retirees and single females during July than in June.

Moving From: 
50.3% from Within OMREB Board Area  (down from 57.9% in July)
22.7% from Alberta (up from 18.2%) ***
11.7% from Other Areas in BC  (up from 8.6%) ***
7.3% from Lower Mainland/Vancouver Island  (down from 9.8%)
3.6% from Saskatchewan/Manitoba (up from 1.2%) *** 
2.3% from Outside Canada  (up from 1.8%) ***
1.3% from Eastern Canada/Maritimes (down from 2.1%) 
0.7% from NWT/Yukon (up from 0.3%) ***

*** Compared to June, more buyers moved from Alberta, other areas of BC, Saskatchewan/Manitoba, the Territories/Yukon and outside Canada in July. Movement from other areas declined.