Over the past few months, the overall sales of condos and townhomes in Vancouver have been declining slowly amid a global economic downturn. However, it isn’t quite so simple as the variations neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood continues to show there is still vitality in this market. That’s a given since for as much condos & townhomes can cost with higher interest rates, detached homes still cost more.
Let’s take a look.
Sales decline in Downtown Vancouver
After a slight decline in unit sales during August, sales of condos & townhomes in Downtown Vancouver declined by 11% during September. Condos in the Downtown VW neighbourhood stayed constant at 20% despite the decline affecting Yaletown (13%) and Westend (10%).
In September, condos for sale priced $500,000 to $1,000,000 were the highest volume of sales in the city’s downtown area.
For these attached homes in the city, the sale to list price ratio remained stable at 99% while the average sale price declined by 1% to $790,000. And finally, for the fifth consecutive month, sales of condos in Coal Harbour remained at 12 units sold.
Comparatively Stable Sales in Vancouver East
Overall, East Vancouver had a 23% sales ratio for condos and townhomes – setting it ahead of downtown and Vancouver West as the regional leader in sales of attached homes. The most active price band for available condos was $400,000 to $500,000. This price range had a 42% sales ratio, meaning almost half of the units for sale in September were sold. In a more broad sense, condos selling between $500,000 to $900,000 had the largest share of the overall sales volume, along with East Vancouver townhomes too.
The most popular configuration for Vancouver East condos is a maximum of 1 bedroom. For inventory, almost half of available condos & townhomes were a 1 bedroom or studio unit.
Which neighbourhoods are experiencing the most sales activity? Three neighbourhoods stand out the most, each with more than 10 sales for the last month. Mount Pleasant VE, Collingwood VE and South Marine all led the Eastside in sales. Mount Pleasant led with 23 sales, with Collingwood VE coming in second at 14, and South Marine at 11 sales.
- View condos in Mount Pleasant VE & available townhome listings on MLS®.
- Collingwood has condos for sale, and attractive townhomes on the market too.
- Consider a townhome in South Marine or condo for sales in South Marine.
Significant Drop in Condos & Townhomes Sales in Vancouver West
We have to address the elephant in the room. During September, overall sales of condos and townhomes dipped by 33% in Vancouver West. Units sold were concentrated within a fairly broad prince range of $600K to $1.5M – however, the $1.25M to $1.5M has the most inventory at 118 units, despite only 10 sales. The downward shift towards more affordable properties has certainly impacted the movement of these higher-priced homes and those units priced above the upper limit.
- View Vancouver West condos priced between $600,000 to $1,500,000.
- View Westside townhomes for sale from $600,000 to $1,500,000.
Unlike East Vancouver, the preferred configuration of condos & townhomes in Vancouver West appears to be properties with a maximum of 2 bedrooms. At just over 80% of all units sold, homes with up to 2 bedrooms appear to be the criteria. This would potentially track with the most active price band too. Click here to view condos for sale with a maximum of 2 bedrooms, or townhome listings with 2 bedrooms or less.
Despite the drop in overall sales, some neighbourhoods performed well in terms of sales. Neighbourhoods like Fairview, Kitsilano, False Creek and University are all quite attractive to a broad swath of potential homeowners, in particular for their positioning on Vancouver’s Westside. Kitsilano and False Creek are both near the waterfront, bringing residents towards the beaches or seawall, but also to the restaurants and shops in the neighbourhood. University has a certain cache for students at nearby UBC due to its proximity to campus and its access to transit along SE Marine Drive. While Fairview is almost a city unto its own, home to the City of Vancouver’s municipal government, and the sprawling Vancouver General Hospital complex. Broadway runs through Fairview, allowing for east-west transit, while the SkyTrain station at City Hall allows for commuters to travel farther and faster.
- Click here for available listings of Fairview VW condos, and townhomes for sale.
- Look at condos for sale in Kitsilano, and townhomes in the beachfront neighbourhood.
- View townhomes in the False Creek neighbourhood, and condos near the False Creek Seawall.
Another popular neighbourhood for condos & townhomes is University VW, which had a 27% sales ratio in September 2022. View condos for sale in University VW here.
Brought to you by your friendly REALTORS® through the MLS® System, courtesy of Ken Stef for your convenience.