House prices in Okotoks set a record in May as inventory levels continue to struggle to keep pace with buyer demand.
According to statistics released by the Calgary Real Estate Board, the benchmark price, which is the price of a typical home in an area, hit $633,900 in May, eclipsing the previous all-time high of $630,300 set last September and equaled in March.
May saw a boost in new listings which resulted in a surge in market activity. The 95 sales recorded last month made it the second busiest May in the last decade, however inventory levels didn’t materially change, leaving Okotoks at the bottom of the list of all Calgary area markets when it comes to months of supply.
“Okotoks has struggled to add supply at the pace reported in Calgary, Cochrane and Airdrie and sales growth has been dampened by limited supply choice,” the board stated in its May statistics package for the Calgary region. “While there have been some improvements in inventory levels, as of May, levels remained nearly 28 per cent below long-term trends.”
The detached benchmark price in Okotoks also set a record in May by reaching $718,500, which is up from the previous high of $715,500 in March.
The benchmark price is up two per cent year over year, while the detached benchmark price has increased by 2.7 per cent.
The most active sector of the market was $700,000 to $799,999, which saw 20 sales.
In High River, the benchmark price set a new all-time high for the third month in a row by hitting $510,200. That’s up from $501,800 in April and $497,800 in March.
The benchmark price in High River is up six per cent year over year, making it the biggest increase in the region.
The detached benchmark price in High River reached $585,700 in May.
There were 33 sales in High River last month, just above the 10-year average. There were 10 sales between $500,000 and $599,999, making it the busiest sector of the market.
