Okanagan Economic Indicators Released for Q3 2017

October 24, 2017

– The Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission (COEDC) provides resources, information and connections to new, existing and expanding businesses.

KELOWNA – The Central Okanagan Economic Indicators Report for Q3 2017 includes cumulative statistics for 10 key economic indicators and it is housed in the Resources page in the COEDC website.

Highlights as reported by the Labour Force Survey include an increase in the Central Okanagan’s labour force (7.2%) and an average unemployment rate of 5.2% for the period of Jan-Sep 2017.

Supporting the growth in the region’s labour force, the Central Okanagan saw 4,109 job postings in Q3 2017, with the highest demand in the sales and service, business and finance and trades, and transport & equipment operator occupations.

Total housing starts continue to trend upwards, with a 90% increase from 2016. In particular, there were 1,945 apartment unit starts in the first three quarters of 2017, a 180% increase from the 695 apartments built in the same period in 2016. Keeping up with the trend, the median home price for Kelowna CMA is $700,000, which is 19% higher than in 2016.

As reported by the latest Income Census Release in September 2017, the Kelowna CMA’s household income is $71,127. This represents a 41% increase between 2005 and 2015, above the provincial increase of 33% and the national increase of 11%.

  • Note the Commission collects the above third party statistical data from BC Stats, Statistics Canada, CMHC, and local governments in the Central Okanagan. Caution should be used in the interpretation of month-to-month statistics, in particular the Labour Force Survey, a monthly sample survey which provides unemployment rates of the Canadian labour market.
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