Over a thousand houses are expected to begin the building process in Kelowna throughout 2016 and 2017.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s (CMHC) released their Spring 2016 Kelowna Housing Market Outlook report, which forecasts housing starts in the Kelowna Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) will rise to between 1,420 and 1,580 homes in 2016.

Next year, housing starts are expected to be in the range of 1,290 and 1,510 homes.

Construction of multi-unit homes is expected to be the main focus in both 2016 and 2017 as the population keeps rising and people look for different housing options.

“Growing demand for housing across all market segments is expected to lead to an overall increase in new construction this year and in 2017,” said Taylor Pardy, CMHC’s Senior Market Analyst, in a statement. “New construction in Kelowna will be supported by positive fundamentals such as migration-driven population growth, strong resale market activity, a lower exchange rate environment and low mortgage interest rates, spurring builders to bring more supply on stream.”

There are expected to be between 5,720 and 6,080 home sales in Kelowna in 2016, followed by between 5,330 and 6,070 sales in 2017.

Right now, with the resale market still very high in Kelowna, housing prices will likely increase to an average somewhere between $446,500 and $453,500 in 2016, and between $452,500 and $467,500 in 2017.

The number of new rental units in Kelowna is not expected to meet the demand.

The apartment vacancy rate will likely move downward to 0.5 per cent in 2016, followed by an increase to 1.0 per cent in 2017 as more new rental units are set to open.

CMHC is a government agency which offers objective housing research and information to Canadian governments, residents and the housing industry.