Expect detached home prices to climb this year in some of B.C.’s favourite vacation spots.
That’s according to national brokerage Royal LePage, which is highlighting potential price increases in recreational property markets including Whistler, Sun Peaks, Big White and Revelstoke.
Winter cabins, mountain chalets and other real estate in the province’s popular winter destinations may see a buoyant spring market, potentially resulting in higher prices, said a Jan. 22 statement from Frank Ingham, associate broker with Royal LePage Sussex.
“Though lowered interest rates have given consumers greater confidence on the trajectory of the real estate market overall, many buyers remain on hold temporarily, looking ahead to additional rate cuts,” Ingham’s statement said.
“As the bottom of the market appears, many will look to get ahead of a potential surge in prices in the spring.”
The Bank of Canada lowered its overnight rate, a major determinant of real estate activity, to 3.25 per cent on Dec. 11. It’s the fifth consecutive cut in the current monetary policy easing cycle. The central bank’s next interest rate decision will be announced Jan. 29.
Royal LePage said detached home prices could rise by double digits in some B.C. ski regions this year, citing its annual report on ski-home values released last November.
Besides improved lending conditions, other tailwinds may include limited supply; potential changes to capital gains taxation by the federal Conservatives if elected to form government; the popularity of golfing, hiking and biking outside of winter; British Columbians and Albertans choosing to vacation closer to home; and the exemption of some areas from short-term rental restrictions.
Royal LePage examined several recreational property markets in the province:
- Whistler: Median detached home price expected to rise nine per cent in 2025 to $3,890,319, after falling three per cent from 2023 to 2024;
- Invermere: Median detached home price expected to rise 10 per cent in 2025 to $823,900, after rising 13.5 per cent from 2023 to 2024;
- Revelstoke: Median detached home price expected to rise five per cent in 2025 to $905,625, after rising 4.9 per cent from 2023 to 2024;
- Mount Washington: Median detached home price expected to rise two per cent in 2025 to $1,122,000, after rising 29.4 per cent from 2023 to 2024;
- Sun Peaks: Median detached home price expected to rise five per cent in 2025 to $1,404,375, after falling 30.1 per cent from 2023 to 2024;
- Big White: Median detached home price expected to rise five per cent in 2025 to $1,585,500, after falling 13.7 per cent from 2023 to 2024.
The brokerage’s median price data for 2023 and 2024 was compiled for the period between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30 in each respective year, sourced through local brokerages and boards in each of the surveyed regions.
While Royal LePage did not forecast condominium prices for 2025, it found that median condo prices rose in some regions and declined in others between 2023 and 2024: Whistler (-12.4 per cent to $583,600), Invermere (+11.4 per cent to $344,900), Revelstoke (+14.3 per cent to $802,000), Mount Washington (-1.1 per cent to $455,000), Sun Peaks (-14.3 per cent to $360,000) and Big White (-22.1 per cent to $413,000).
Separately, the brokerage released price forecasts on Jan. 14 for major Canadian cities. It expects home prices in Greater Vancouver to increase four per cent from the fourth quarter of 2024 to the fourth quarter of 2025. This is based on what the brokerage calls the “aggregate” home price, calculated using a weighted average of the median values of all housing type transactions collected in the region.
Specifically, Royal LePage said the aggregate home price in Greater Vancouver could increase from $1,229,000 in the Q4 2024 (actual) to $1,278,160 in Q4 2025 (expected). Forecast values were provided by Royal LePage residential real estate experts “based on trend analysis and market knowledge,” the brokerage said.
This comes after the aggregate home price in Greater Vancouver increased a modest 0.7 per cent to $1,229,000 year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2024, consisting partly of a 1.4-per-cent increase in the median detached home price to $1,755,800 and a one-per-cent increase in the median condominium price to $770,100.
