$1.5M condos in Kamloops? They’re already selling

The doors to the tallest condo building in Kamloops are nearly open as a massive downtown development nears its next milestone.

Fewer than half of the units at the first City Gardens tower are still for sale and among them are two $1.5 million penthouse suites.

At just over 1,500 square feet, the two suites are sub-penthouses at the 24-floor Trillium tower.

Realtor Brendan Shaw leads sales for the Kelson Group project. He said the two suites, listed for $1.68 million and $1.5 million respectively, will be among the most expensive condo units sold in the city.

“I think it’s pretty close,” he said. “I know there have been a couple sales over that million-dollar mark, but we have two sales over one-and-a-half million in that building already.”

While the penthouse is reserved for the company’s owner, the luxury suites below it still offer “exclusivity” and “commanding views” of Kamloops those buyers might be looking for.

Just over 40 per cent of the building is still for sale with smaller units range in price from $450,000 to $880,000. That’s not far off its sales record from more than two years ago when more than half of Trillium’s suites were sold in a single day in May 2022.

Opening of the first tower, initially slated for this year, has been delayed to spring 2026.

Among around 100 condo listings in the city, the median asking price in Kamloops is $570,000, according to Realtor.ca.

Only one condo outside City Gardens listing crests just over a $1 million listing, with a 2,000-square-foot downtown suite at 370 Battle Street.

As condo sales dropped by 35 per cent last month compared to a year earlier, Interior Realtors estimated the benchmark price at $367,700. That’s a small change from the benchmark price last year.

As the post-COVID real estate market began to slow, Kelson Group shifted some of its City Garden project away from sales. While Trillium continues to be focused on owner-occupied units, its neighbouring tower will be a rental building.

The surrounding townhouses eventually following the towers will also be rental builds.

Company president Jason Fawcett said Trillium tower will soon be opened so prospective buyers can view the soon-to-be-finished project.