Benchmark prices slid as buyers held back across Metro Vancouver’s housing market
Metro Vancouver’s residential market retreated in October, with sales dropping 10.2% year-over-year and landing 22.5% below the 10-year seasonal average, according to data from the Greater Vancouver REALTORS (GVR).
The GVR reported 2,024 transactions last month, against 2,255 in October 2025.
New listings fell 11.6% to 4,805, 1% above the 10-year seasonal average, while total active inventory dipped 4.3% to 15,688, still 24% above the long-term benchmark.
Andrew Lis, GVR chief economist and vice-president of data analytics in Vancouver, attributed the pullback to external forces piling on an already subdued market.
“October came with a few suspenseful distractions for buyers and sellers alike, with a somewhat surprising Bank of Canada rate hike and a snap provincial election among them,” Lis said.
“Between the onslaught of news coverage of the provincial and municipal elections, and the uncertainty surrounding where mortgage rates may be headed, it’s not entirely surprising that market participants took a step back in October to recalibrate.”
Prices keep sliding across Metro Vancouver
The MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark fell to $1,068,600 in October, down 5.2% from October 2025 and 0.7% from September.
Detached homes led losses — the benchmark dropped 7% to $1,775,200 on 643 sales.
Apartment transactions declined 16.7% to 892, with the benchmark off 5.9% at $673,400.
Attached homes were steadier, with 468 sales and a benchmark of $1,006,500, down 5.5% year-over-year.
The overall sales-to-active listings ratio sat at 13.4% — with detached at 11.6%, attached at 16.5%, and apartments at 13.5%.
Historical data shows downward price pressure typically builds when the ratio holds below 12% over a sustained period.
Read more: GTA home sales stumble in October as buyers seek economic clarity
Rate hike reshapes broker conversations
The Bank of Canada’s 25-basis-point move to 2.5% on October 28, its first increase since July 2023, added fresh urgency to what the BoC’s next decision means for the mortgage market.
For brokers already working through Canada’s mounting 2026 mortgage renewal wave, the timing was unwelcome.
Joel Fox, chief operating officer of Ownright, a Toronto-based digital real estate law platform, was direct: “A rate hike likely locks us into year-over-year declines in housing activity for the rest of this year and into next, and I don’t see things turning until there’s a rate drop.”
His practical advice to clients approaching renewal: “If you’re renewing in the next year, start early. It’s a good idea to talk to your lender or broker, compare offers and know what your payment will be before the renewal notice shows up.”
Read more: Calgary home sales fall as condo oversupply presses prices lower
Lis, meanwhile, identified one potential tailwind.
“With one quarter-point rate hike now behind us, and financial markets pricing in a slight chance of another quarter-point hike in December, it’s possible some buyers may step in to take advantage of rate holds that will soon be expiring,” he said.
“Still, it’s a difficult quandary for buyers who’ve watched prices edge lower throughout the year, only to see those affordability gains eroded by higher borrowing costs.”
Whether the market ends 2026 on firmer ground, he added, “remains the defining question that will set the tone for the New Year.”
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