Association of Interior REALTORS® - Kootenay Branch

Residential real estate activity across the Interior remained in line with seasonal expectations in May, reflecting a stable and balanced market environment, reports the Association of Interior REALTORS® (the Association).

The Association region recorded 1,456 residential sales in May, up from 1,319 in April and nearly matching May 2025 activity, with a modest year-over-year decrease of 1.4%.

New residential listings saw a 13.3% decrease compared to May 2025 with 3,102 new listings recorded last month, and down from the previous month’s 3,134 new listings. The total number of active listings saw a 6.8% decrease in inventory compared to May 2025 with 9,486 recorded across the Association region. The only percentage increase in active listings across the Association region was recorded in the Kootenay and Boundary region with a total increase of 2.4% compared to May last year.

“While new listing activity remains below last year’s levels, overall real estate activity across the Interior continues at a healthy and sustainable pace. The decline in new listings could, in part, reflect buyers’ continued demand for greater choice, with fresh inventory often being absorbed into sales relatively quickly after coming to market. As a result, inventory levels have had limited opportunity to build despite a steady flow of new listings,” says Association of Interior REALTORS® President Ryan Mayne, adding that “this dynamic has helped maintain balanced market conditions, creating fair opportunities for both buyers and sellers.”

In the Kootenay and Boundary region, 267 sales were recorded last month, marking a 13.6% decrease compared to May 2025 and down from April’s 283 units sold. There were 611 new listings recorded in the Kootenay and Boundary region in May marking a 2.3% increase compared to the same month the previous year and up from April’s 552 new listings. The overall active listings in the Kootenay region saw a 2.4% increase compared to May 2025 with 1,773 recorded listings.

“The Kootenay and Boundary market continued to demonstrate stability, with activity levels closely mirroring those seen a year ago. The gradual increase in listings is a welcome sign, particularly in a region where inventory has often struggled to keep pace with demand,” notes Mayne.

The benchmark price, a better representation of value compared to the average or median price as it represents a dwelling of “typical attributes”, saw a 4.4% increase in the Kootenay region in the single-family housing category compared to the same month the previous year, coming in at $615,700. The townhouse category saw a 0.2% increase in benchmark pricing, coming in at $496,700. In the condominium housing category, benchmark price saw an increase of 1.7% in year-over-year comparison, coming in at $331,900.