Lake Country jumps to No. 1 for home values

Average Lake Country home assessed at $673,000 compared to Kelowna’s average of $650,000

Homes in Lake Country took the biggest jump in value in 2020 among residential properties in the Central Okanagan.

The assessment for an average single-family home in the town of 15,000 people rose seven cent, from $627,000 to $673,000.

That makes Lake Country the priciest market for single-family homes in the Central Okanagan. Kelowna had the top spot in 2019, with an average assessment of $629,000, but with an average rise in value of 3% last year the new typical valuation is $650,000.

“For the Okanagan, the majority of homeowners can expect to see moderate value changes compared to last year,” Tracy Wall, Okanagan area deputy assessor for the B.C. Assessment Authority, said in a Monday news release.

“Some of our smaller communities, such as Keremeos, Princeton, Enderby, and Lumby are seeing notably higher increases in residential values compared to last year,” Wall said.

Homeowners can now check the assessment value of their own property, and any other for which they know the street address, at bcassessment.ca

Here are the assessments for single-family homes in various Okanagan communities. The first number is this year’s valuation, the second is last year’s, and the third is the percentage change.

Lake Country — $673,000, $627,000, up 7% Kelowna — $650,000, $629,000, up 3%

West Kelowna — $632,000, $607,000, up 4% Peachland — $590,000, $573,000, up 3%

Vernon — $479,000, $463,000, up 3%

Penticton — $479,000, $469,000, up 2%

A typical condo or townhouse in Kelowna rose 2% in value, from $364,000 to $372,000. A comparable property in West Kelowna fell 3% in value, from $387,000 to $374,000.

The assessments are said to reflect a property’s value on July 1 in the preceding year. The valuations are based on such things as sale price of comparable properties in the area, and the home’s size, age, quality, condition, and view.