June 2025 felt like a weird turning point in the North Shore housing market. The official line from Greater Vancouver REALTORS® is that the market is “stabilizing” after a rough start to the year, but on the ground, it still feels pretty soft. Sales are down about 10% from last June, which sounds bad but is actually less bad than the previous months.
Alex Hu of Jovi Realty says, “With over 17,000 listings on the market right now, and with mortgage rates down around two percent since last summer, buyers are enjoying some of the most favourable conditions seen in years.”
Listings have piled up. In this post, I’ll dive into why condo sales tanked, why all those “For Sale” signs might be good news for buyers, and what the vibe is in West Van and North Vancouver these days.
Condo Sales Got Clobbered (And Why It Matters)
If you’ve heard one stat about June, it’s probably this… Apartment and condo sales dropped 16.5% compared to last year. That’s the steepest decline of any property type. To put numbers on it, only 1,040 condos sold in June (across Greater Van) vs about 1,245 a year ago. In contrast, detached houses declined by approximately 5%, while townhouses experienced a slight increase in sales. So why are condos the hardest hit?
Investors Hitting Pause
Investors or speculators purchase many condos here, and those individuals are cautious right now. High borrowing costs and slower price growth have drained the fun and opportunity out of flipping condos. I’m seeing fewer bidding wars on downtown shoeboxes and more units sitting on the market with “price-reduced” labels. Nationwide, condo prices have been slipping for 19 months straight, and Vancouver’s no exception. Weak demand + rising inventory = chillier prices for condos, and investors know it.
First-Timers Priced (or Rated) Out
Condos are typically entry-level for new buyers, but affordability remains a challenge. Yes, prices are a bit lower now, but mortgage rates are significantly higher than they were a few years ago. Many first-time buyers struggle to meet the stress test or the monthly payments. RBC stated that housing in Canada was “the most affordable it’s been in 3 years” this quarter, which is a low bar, still near the levels of the 1990s bubble. So, many would-be condo buyers are holding off, hoping things improve.
We’ve had rate hike after rate hike, followed by a couple of cuts, then a pause, and it’s exhausting. By now, buyers almost expect some new curveball with each Bank of Canada announcement. One mortgage broker’s report summed it up… Vancouver buyers have a choice and leverage now, but many are “sitting on their hands, largely due to … interest rate fatigue.”.
People are tired of these high rates, but they are not convinced that they’ll drop enough yet to rush in.
Condo benchmark prices are inching down. June’s typical apartment price was about $748,400, down 3.2% year-over-year and 1.2% lower than just a month prior, according to gvrealtors.ca. In real life, I’ve seen condo sellers having to actually compete for buyers’ attention, offering free strata fee months or finally accepting conditional offers (something unheard of during the frenzy days).
It’s a strange new world for Vancouver condos, one where buyers can negotiate without 10 other people in line. Which brings me to the next point…
Listings Are Way Up – Buyers, Enjoy the Buffet
Remember the days of dreadfully low inventory when finding any listing in your budget felt like winning the lottery? Total active listings in Metro Vancouver hit 17,561 in June, a 23.8% increase from last year and a nearly 44% overshoot of the 10-year average for June. There are loads of homes for sale. For buyers, that’s a breath of fresh air.
Greater choice means less panic-buying. I strolled through an open house in North Van last weekend, and it was me and two other groups casually checking the place out. This is a far cry from the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds of 2021. With inventory “significantly higher than demand,” prices have been cooling off slightly.
The overall benchmark price for Metro Van (~$1.17M) is approximately 2.8% lower than it was a year ago. It is not a crash by any means but a modest rollback. More importantly, with so many listings, buyers finally have options and time. You have plenty of time to make a decision.
The sales-to-active-listings ratio (a measure of market activity) was 12.8% in June, which is barely above the cutoff for a buyers’ market. Detached homes are already below that line (~9.9% ratio), meaning there’s downward pressure on those prices if this keeps up.
The June 2025 North Shore Market
BMO issued a note in early June, cautioning that genuine deals might be ahead… Inventory building and sales cooling have led to expectations that prices will soften, but sellers are still resisting price cuts, instead hoping for rate cuts. That pretty much nails the vibe. Sellers are like, “I’ll wait for a better price or lower rates,” and buyers are like, “I’ll wait for you to blink.”
For now, though, it’s the best buyer’s market in years by many measures. The Fraser Valley (think Langley and beyond) is an even more extreme case. The board’s president said this market offers “very real opportunities” and is “uniquely favourable for first-time buyers” willing to brave the uncertainty.
North Shore Housing Market
Greater Van isn’t quite a fire sale, but with mortgage rates about 2% lower than last summer’s peak and tons of inventory, it’s way less stressful to be a buyer than during the COVID boom. My buddy, who’s been saving up, is suddenly touring homes in Burnaby, feeling like he might actually snag something below asking for once.
More listings also reflect that some owners are keen (or forced) to sell. Investors with multiple properties, for instance, see the writing on the wall. Some are offloading condos or older homes now before prices potentially slip further. And move-up buyers, who sat tight last year, are also testing the waters.
As long as interest rates remain high, I suspect listings will stay high (everyone has that friend with a 3% five-year fixed from 2021 who refuses to sell and give up that rate… Interest rate lock-in is real. However, overall, this inventory surge is providing the market with a much-needed breather.
North Vancouver: Lots of Listings, Local Negotiations
North Van is one of those areas that’s always popular. Families love it for the schools and nature, and downsizers love it for the community vibe. But even the mighty North Shore has cooled. June sales in North Vancouver were down ~7-8% from the previous year, and total inventory increased by a substantial 29% year-over-year. I can confirm the inventory jump. In my complex, a few units that likely would have sold in a week back in 2022 have been on the market for a month. Price drops aren’t huge, but they’re happening.
What’s interesting in North Vancouver is the mix. The sales-to-active ratio is ~18.8%, which is actually higher than the region’s 12.8% (so the North Van market is a bit hotter than average). But it varies by type. Detached houses in North Vancouver are slower (a 16% ratio), while townhomes are still in demand (with a sales ratio of around 25%). This is no surprise, since townhouses hit that sweet spot for many families who can’t afford a house at North Van prices ($ 1.5M+).
Condominiums in North Vancouver
Condominiums in North Vancouver have a moderate ratio (~18-19%), which is pretty balanced. The higher-value properties (such as luxury homes in Edgemont or Upper Lonsdale) are taking longer to sell, and buyers are negotiating aggressively.
I’ve heard of a case where a North Vancouver house listed at $2.2 million received zero offers for weeks, then finally sold for approximately $2.1 million with subjects (conditions). That would have been unthinkable during the craziness. With over 1,000 homes on the market in North Vancouver (across all property types), buyers can be choosy. If one seller doesn’t meet your price, go down the street to the next open house. That dynamic does give buyers more power, though; if a place is truly special (with a prime location and turn-key condition), it will still receive attention.
The overall sentiment in North Van is cautiously optimistic. People see that the worst of the downturn might be over (sales declines are smaller now), but nobody’s expecting a return to 2021 insanity overnight. A lot of families are basically saying, “If we find the right home, we’ll go for it, but we’re not in a rush.” And sellers, well, some are resigned to the new normal that it might take a couple of months to sell, and you won’t get 5% over asking. It’s a more normal market, frankly, and I think many find that a relief.
West Vancouver: High-End Market on Ice
West Vancouver is the land of $4 million tear-downs and jaw-dropping views. But when the market cools, West Van really cools. There were only 52 sales in all of West Vancouver in June (including houses, condos, and other properties), representing a 29.7% decline from last year. Ouch. The sales-to-listings ratio here was about 6.9%, which is deep in the buyer’s market territory/
There are numerous listings, but very few takers. I’ve heard of open houses in West Van with zero visitors showing up. A realtor friend of mine joked that selling a luxury home right now is like “fishing in an empty pond.”
Affordability and taxes are the central issues. With luxury price points, the interest rate hit is massive, even wealthy buyers dislike locking in 5-6% rates on multi-million-dollar loans. Additionally, West Van has been significantly impacted by tax changes in recent years. This includes the foreign buyers’ tax and vacancy tax. Those buyers haven’t returned in significant numbers.
The West Vancouver June 2025 Real Estate Market
Even folks who can afford these homes are sitting back, thinking prices might slip further or waiting for financial markets to improve. Global economic jitters (trade wars, etc.) also weigh on the high end. Some international buyers are just in “wait and see” mode.
For the few buyers out shopping in West Van, it’s open season. They know they have the upper hand. Detached houses in West Van had a mere 5.2% sales ratio in June, which is basically frozen. Sellers of a $5M mansion might get one low-ball offer if they’re lucky.
And they might actually have to consider it. I’ve seen price cuts in the multi-million-dollar range on some high-end listings that I’ve been sitting for six months or more. There are also more creative incentives. Consider developers of boutique condos offering strata fee waivers, as well as luxury home sellers who are willing to include furniture or even exotic cars (yes, that’s a thing sometimes) to entice buyers.
The sentiment in West Van is a mix of frustration and resignation on the sell side and cautious opportunism on the buy side. Long-time West Van owners often have a lot of equity and can afford to hold out, so we’re not seeing panic selling, just a stalemate.
But if you’ve ever dreamed of that North Shore lifestyle and have the means, now’s as good a buyer’s market as you’re likely to get. Just don’t expect prices to be “low” by any usual standard. Even after a 3% drop, the benchmark detached price is around $3 million or more (West Van remains one of the priciest markets in Canada). It’s all relative.