CPABC: Home sale prices up in Northwest B.C.’s largest communities in 2025
SMITHERS, British Columbia, Aug. 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- According to BC Check-Up: Live, an annual report by the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia (CPABC) on demographic and affordability trends across the province, Northwest B.C.’s population grew by 686 residents in 2024, bringing the total population to 100,681 people.
“Northwest B.C.’s population has grown steadily over the last five years,” said Jeanne MacNeil, CPA, CA, partner at Edmison Mehr Chartered Professional Accountants. “There has been a shift in terms of where newcomers to the region have been arriving from.”
Between July 1, 2023, and July 1, 2024, the region gained 1,104 residents through international migration, slightly fewer than the record high recorded one year earlier. Meanwhile, the region lost 237 residents to other provinces and 212 residents to other parts of B.C. This marked the first time in 12 years that Northwest B.C. lost residents to other provinces.
“Population growth in the region has been modest, but home prices have still increased drastically over the last few years,” noted MacNeil. “A combination of factors, including relative affordability, low inventories, and good economic opportunities, have all contributed.”
During the first half of 2025, sale prices for homes increased in Northwest B.C.’s largest communities. The average price for a home sold (year-to-date) in Terrace was $557,850 in June 2025, up 7.4 per cent compared to the same period in 2024. Similarly, the average sale price also increased in Smithers (+11.7 per cent), Prince Rupert (+9.7 per cent) and Kitimat (+6.5 per cent) on a year-over-year basis. Compared to the first six months of 2020, the increase in home sale prices ranged from 74.6 per cent in Smithers to 23.6 per cent in Kitimat.
“There is still work to be done to improve housing affordability in the region,” concluded MacNeil. “Finding cost-effective ways to build more homes needs to be a priority as our region grows.”
To learn more, see: www.bccpa.ca
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About CPA British Columbia The Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia (CPABC) is the training, governing, and regulatory body for over 40,000 CPA members and 6,000 CPA candidates and students. CPABC carries out its primary mission to protect the public by enforcing the highest professional and ethical standards and contributing to the advancement of public policy. |
CPABC Media Contact: Jack Blackwell, Economist 604.259.1143 news@bccpa.ca
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