Townhomes Were the Only Segment That Grew in August. Here Is What That Tells Upsizers in Richmond and Burnaby.

The GVR August 2026 numbers released September 2nd contained one detail that stood out from everything else in the report and I want to make sure upsizers in Richmond and Burnaby are paying attention to it.

Attached homes, meaning townhouses and row homes, were the only property type in Metro Vancouver to post a year-over-year sales gain in August 2026. 412 sales, up 0.7 percent from 409 the same month last year. Every other segment declined. Detached fell 3.1 percent. Apartments fell 6.8 percent. In a month where the overall market continued its downward trend to close the summer, townhomes held and grew.

That is not a coincidence. That is a signal.

The sales-to-active listings ratio for the attached segment in August sits at 15.1 percent. For context, the ratio for detached is 9.6 percent and the ratio for apartments is 13.7 percent. The townhome segment at 15.1 percent is the most active, most in-demand part of the Metro Vancouver market right now. It is approaching the 20 percent threshold where GVR's own historical data shows upward price pressure beginning to build. We are not there yet. But the townhome benchmark of $1,028,800, down just 4.4 percent year over year and only 0.2 percent from July, is already showing price stability that the other segments have not achieved.

In August 2026, the only segment to grow was attached homes, with 412 sales, up 0.7 percent from 409. Detached fell 3.1 percent. Apartment sales fell 6.8 percent. For anyone who has been watching this market and wondering when the townhome segment would start to separate from the broader softness, that separation is visible in the August data.

Here is what this means practically for a condo owner in Richmond or Burnaby thinking about upsizing.

The condo you are selling is still in a market where buyers have options. The apartment benchmark across Metro Vancouver in August 2026 came in at $758,896 on average sold price, with the overall composite benchmark at $1,081,900, representing a 5.6 percent yearly decrease. The apartment sales-to-active ratio of 13.7 percent tells you there is still negotiating room on your condo sale, but it is less distressed than the headlines suggest. Buyers are there. They are just being careful. Pricing correctly and presenting well matters enormously in this environment.

The townhome you are stepping into is the part of the market that is tightening fastest. A sales-to-active ratio of 15.1 percent, a benchmark of $1,028,800, and year-over-year sales growth when everything around it is declining tells you where demand is concentrated. Buyers who have been sitting out the market are coming back first to the segment that offers ground-oriented living, real square footage, a garage, and the kind of daily life improvement that a condo simply cannot provide. That is the Richmond and Burnaby townhome buyer. And there are more of them in September than there were in August.

Active listings across Metro Vancouver in August 2026 totalled 15,798, a 2.7 percent decrease compared to August 2025, while new listings of 4,100 came in 3 percent below last year as well. Both the numerator and denominator of this market are moving in the same direction. Active listings are falling. New supply is slowing. The inventory overhang that has kept buyers in control is beginning to draw down.

For an upsizer, the sequencing of that draw-down matters. The townhome segment will tighten first because it is already the most in-demand. The condo segment will follow as buyers re-enter the market and work their way up from the most accessible entry point. Understanding where your sale sits in that sequence and where your purchase sits is the kind of market-level thinking that shapes whether you end up with the best possible outcome or a mediocre one.

In Richmond, the Hamilton and West Cambie townhome inventory I am watching most closely right now has seen meaningful movement in the last three weeks. Burnaby's Edmonds corridor has seen similar activity. The sellers who are sitting at 45 days on market heading into mid-September are the ones creating the best negotiating opportunities right now, before the fall market fully accelerates.

If you are ready to map out what the upsizing move looks like for your specific situation, I want to have that conversation with you. I work in Richmond and Burnaby every single day and the picture I have of this market is current and specific. Reach out.

Neville Mak, REALTOR® The Real Brokerage 778-688-6667 | nevillemakre@gmail.com | nevillemak.ca Serving Richmond and Burnaby