Alberta is leading the country so far this year in percentage growth of house sales.

The Canadian Real Estate Association reported Friday that MLS sales in the province from January to November  have increased by 13 per cent compared to a year ago.

In the first 11 months of this year, there has been almost $20 billion in MLS sales in Alberta -- a 47.5 per cent increase from the $13.5 billion in sales for the same period a year ago.

The number of unit sales was 70,320 until the end of November compared to 62,232 last year.

And the average price of a house in the province was $283,535 — increasing by 30.6 per cent from last year’s $217,178.

“Resale housing markets are still tighter and show bigger price increases in Western provinces compared to Central Canada,” said CREA’s Chief Economist Gregory Klump. “The constrast between Western and Central Canadian housing markets is forecast to persist next year, but price increases next year will be more moderate.”

The national average price for a house has increased by 11.3 per cent in the past year from $248,759 to $276,824.