Navigating the Current Vancouver Housing Market

The Vancouver housing market has been a wild one for the past few years and as more and more immigrants flock to one of Canada’s most beautiful cities, housing is becoming a larger topic of conversation. While it appeared that the housing market was stabilizing a bit in 2019 after some sellers had to slash prices nearly 15% of their asking price, it seems that the damage may have been done on the residential housing market. In this article, we will take a look at what this means for those that are looking for homes in Vancouver and how to navigate the large housing market.

Things Are Slowing Down

In 2019, condominium prices in Vancouver paused for the first time in a long time. Vancouver’s housing market has been a sort of roller coaster for the last few years, and now things are finally starting to settle down. Vancouver has implemented new taxing guidelines, especially on foreign buyers, and this helped weather most of the storm in 2019, along with new supply of housing units that helped decrease prices some.

Vancouver Is Still Expensive

While things slowed down a little bit in 2019, the cost of housing in Vancouver remains expensive. Vancouver was listed as the second most expensive place to live in the world. Not just Canada, but the world. This may start to drive away the nearly 300,000 immigrants that the city sees annually, but Vancouver still remains one of the most popular moving destinations in the world.

Community Restrictions May Halt Growth

Some communities in Vancouver have spoken out against the rapid growth of high rise housing buildings in order to preserve their community. Government and community leaders in certain neighborhoods and suburbs of Vancouver have chosen to implement height restrictions on newly constructed buildings, limiting the potential growth of new condos and apartments. This potential limit on supply could end up driving up the price of housing in those specific areas if the demand continually increases.

While Expensive, Vancouver Homes Still Sell Fast

Vancouver homes, condos, and apartments may still be expensive, with homes averaging $1.1 million, but the homes are still selling at an extremely high rate. Prices are trending down, however, and some suburbs are still hovering at just under $600,000. If the trends continue to go down and the housing market does indeed stabilize, or even crash, housing will become much more affordable and available.

Suburbs May Be Where Its At

With Vancouver prices still high and potential developments slowing down, those still looking to live in or around Vancouver may be better suited to buy a home in the suburbs. Suburb living can be more enjoyable for those who want to be near the big city, without all the big city problems. With plenty of homes still sitting at a reasonable price, the suburbs of Vancouver may be a viable option for homebuyers.

We hope that you find this article informative and helpful when you are trying to navigate your way through the Vancouver housing market.