KITCHENER - Demand for homes in Waterloo Region continued to grow at a fever pitch in 2016, as would-be buyers battled it out for scarce listings and pushed real estate prices to unprecedented levels.

In Kitchener and Waterloo, the region's largest real estate association reported a record-setting year for house sales after the total value of residential purchases swelled to almost $2.6-billion.

That's an increase of more than 30 per cent from the previous year, according to the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors - and there's no sign the market will cool off any time soon.

A total of 6,655 homes, including semi-detached, townhomes, condos, apartments and detached, were bought in Kitchener and Waterloo last year, a jump of more than 1,000 units from 2015. That's despite fewer homes being put up for sale.

The red-hot seller's market means buyers are shelling out more and often getting into aggressive bidding wars to get the home they want. In many cases, homes are selling in hours, rather than weeks, and buyers are getting multiple offers, unconditional offers and offers above asking price as buyers duke it out.

"We're having a bit of a feeding frenzy," said Jim Robinson, president of the Cambridge Association of Realtors.

"It's been a wild and crazy year ... It's unprecedented in my time, and more senior people in my office say they've never seen anything like it. We're in uncharted territory."

That $2.6-billion figure doesn't include private house sales, other listing services or house sales in Cambridge - where annual numbers haven't been tabulated yet, but are also climbing. In November, the average cost of a detached home in Cambridge topped $400,000 for the first time.

In Kitchener and Waterloo, an average sale price for a detached house now tops $451,000 - closing in on the national average that's inflated by hypercharged markets like Vancouver and Toronto.

Realtors are urging patience for would-be buyers.

"I've never seen a market like this," said James Craig, president of the K-W realtors' association.

"I think a lot of people get frustrated, losing out multiple times on properties. They get a little worn down by the process. But you can't give up, and you can't get emotionally invested in each offer."

A combination of factors are at play. Low mortgage rates, a growing local economy and lower home prices relative to the Greater Toronto Area - where prices are approaching unaffordable levels for many people - are playing a role.

That's brought a whole new kind of aggressive buyer to the local housing market. Toronto-area realtors are increasingly coming into the region, representing clients who don't flinch at paying above asking price.

"They have less price sensitivity," Robinson said. "For them, these average house prices are a deal because they're looking at home prices approaching $1 million. They're willing to throw more money at a problem because they see it as a discounted price compared to what they're used to."

Craig believes most Toronto-area buyers aren't coming here to commute back into the GTA, but are instead drawn by jobs and a more affordable quality of life in Waterloo Region.

"If you have the dream of home ownership, you have to keep going west," he said. "Those GTA buyers bring a different mindset to the table, and it's something that's certainly a change to what we've seen here over the years."

Another factor driving up prices is the low inventory of homes being put up for sale. Many empty-nesters are staying in their homes longer because there aren't affordable options to downsize, Craig said.

Residential listings processed through the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors dropped almost 10 per cent last year, down to 8,003 homes. At times, the housing inventory dropped to 10-year lows.

"(Last year) was marked by unrelenting demand for homes, in the face of fewer homes being put on the market," Craig said. "While this puts sellers in a very strong position, it's not so easy when those same sellers need to downsize or move-up."

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The average sale price of a detached home in Kitchener and Waterloo rose to $451,738, an increase of 12.5 per cent over 2015. The average price for an apartment-style condo rose to $229,676; townhomes sold for an average of $287,396, up almost 10 per cent; and the average for semi-detached homes climbed to $300,806, up almost 12 per cent.

"There is no smoking gun to explain the current market. Mortgage rates remain low, inducing more consumers to get into the market," Craig said.

"What I hope to see is more balance returning to the market, because I sure don't see the appetite for home ownership in Waterloo Region letting up any time soon."