So it’s been an interesting month! Interest rates remained steady at the April 16th announcement – the Bank of Canada seemed to indicate they were going to hold course for now to give this unexpected uncertainty time to settle. ON one hand there is expectation that rates will drop in the future, but I’ve been reading about bonds yields in the USA and how that may lead to interest rates settling in the low 4% range. So tread carefully in buying a property under the assumption that your rate will be lower in the near future. The next Bank of Canada rate announcement is June 4th. In other news, we elected Mark Carney and the Liberals, which will hopefully give us some stability over the next few years.
This past month was surprisingly slow. In my own business and in speaking with other realtors, there was a noticeable decrease in activity from March to April, after Trump announced tariffs and other asinine policies, effectively throwing a wrench into what was an increasingly positive economy. I imagine the rest of this Spring and Summer will be slower with Buyers taking a ‘wait and see’ approach for now. I bet we’ll see some good activity by Fall – interest rates will be lower, the shock of the tariffs will have passed and people will be tired of waiting. I don’t expect the market to see major gains in the short term but we will likely see more activity.
Notwithstanding my previous paragraph, we are still seeing some activity in the market! I had 2 clients interested in offering on units they viewed this weekend (a condo and house in East Van) but both ended up receiving multiple offers. These were good units priced on the lower end of the spectrum, so I’m not surprised that my clients were interested and not surprised they sold quickly and in multiple offers. Buyers tend to be a little more particular these days and it can take a little more time to put a deal together if you aren’t priced sharp.
I said this last month and will say it again: inventory is higher than we’ve seen in a few years and sales are lower. The sales to active ratio shows either a Buyer’s Market or Balanced Market, depending on type or property and neighbourhood. If you’d like to see specific stats for specific neighbourhoods – reach out! I’m happy to dive in deeper for certain markets (i.e. detached houses in Grandview and Mount Pleasant). Some of the best deals on real estate are when everyone else pulls back. There are currently deals out there and there will continue to be deals out there during these uncertain times, you’ll just have to be looking, financially prepared and potentially ready for a reno. There are a ton of deals in the 1 bedroom condo market right now.
As always, Real Estate should be viewed as a long term asset – you can’t purchase something with the expectation that it will make you a ton of money in the short term these days. You’re buying to pay down your mortgage and eventually have plenty of equity and a home to call your own.
Here’s a snippet from the Real Estate Board’s Monthly Update:
The slowdown in home sales registered on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Metro Vancouver that began early this year continued in April, with sales down nearly 24 per cent year-over-year. “From a historical perspective, the slower sales we’re now seeing stand out as unusual, particularly against a backdrop of significantly improved borrowing conditions, which typically helps to boost sales,” said Andrew Lis, GVR’s director of economics and data analytics.
The Greater Vancouver REALTORS® (GVR) reports that residential sales in the region totalled 2,163 in April 2025, a 23.6 per cent decrease from the 2,831 sales recorded in April 2024. This was 28.2 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average (3,014).
Across all detached, attached and apartment property types, the sales-to-active listings ratio for April 2025 is 13.8 per cent. By property type, the ratio is 9.9 per cent for detached homes, 17.5 per cent for attached, and 15.7 per cent for apartments.
Sales of detached homes in April 2025 reached 578, a 29 per cent decrease from the 814 detached sales recorded in April 2024. The benchmark price for a detached home is $2,021,800. This represents a 0.7 per cent decrease from April 2024 and a 0.6 per cent decrease compared to March 2025.
Sales of apartment homes reached 1,130 in April 2025, a 20.2 per cent decrease compared to the 1,416 sales in April 2024. The benchmark price of an apartment home is $762,800. This represents a two per cent decrease from April 2024 and a 0.6 per cent decrease compared to March 2025.
Attached home sales in April 2025 totalled 442, a 23.8 per cent decrease compared to the 580 sales in April 2024. The benchmark price of a townhouse is $1,102,300. This represents a 2.9 per cent decrease from April 2024 and a one per cent decrease compared to March 2025.
Onto the stats:
Vancouver West Real Estate Stats up to and including April 2025
HPI Price for Vancouver West
*Unfortunately HPI Price can’t be any more specific than Condo/Townhouse/House*
Average Sales Price for Vancouver West
Median Percentage of Original Price for Vancouver West
New Listings for Vancouver West
Total Inventory for Vancouver West
Total Sales for Vancouver West
Sales to Active Ratio for Vancouver West
Median Days on Market for Vancouver West
East Vancouver Real Estate Stats up to and including April 2025
HPI Price for East Vancouver
*Unfortunately HPI Price can’t be any more specific than Condo/Townhouse/House*
Average Sales Price for East Vancouver
Median Percentage of Original Price for East Vancouver
New Listings for East Vancouver
Total Inventory for East Vancouver
Total Sales for East Vancouver
Sales to Active Ratio for East Vancouver
Median Days on Market for East Vancouver
As always, if you have questions on a particular kind of property or neighbourhood, get in touch with me!
And if you’re thinking about selling your property, give me a call to chat about value, pricing strategy and the sale process. There are plenty of details to chat about – including timing, value, staging and your potential purchase – so don’t hesitate to contact me if you’d like to get started kristi@realestatevancity.ca or 778-387-7371. The better you understand your current value and what Buyers may be looking for, the more successful your sale.