If you've been watching the market and feeling unsure about what to do next, you're not alone. The headlines are mixed, the numbers move every month, and a decision this big deserves clear information. Here's my plain-English read of the September 2026 numbers from Greater Vancouver REALTORS® (GVR), with a closer look at Richmond and Burnaby.

The Big Picture

Metro Vancouver recorded 1,717 sales in September, down 8.4% from the 1,875 sales a year ago and about 25% below the 10-year seasonal average of 2,289. New listings came in at 5,852, down 10.3% from last September. Active listings sit at 16,394: a little lower than a year ago, but still roughly 24% above the 10-year seasonal average.

The composite benchmark price is $1,075,900, down 5.5% from September 2025 and down about half a percent from August.

The number I watch most closely is the sales-to-active listings ratio, which landed at 10.9%. Historically, prices tend to face downward pressure when that ratio stays below 12% for a sustained stretch, and upward pressure when it runs above 20% for several months. We're in the first camp, which fits the gradual price drift we've been seeing all year.

Not Every Segment Is the Same

The 8.4% decline is almost entirely an apartment story. Detached and attached sales actually finished slightly ahead of last September. GVR's chief economist, Andrew Lis, points to end-users (people buying a place to live) driving the market while investor demand waits on better conditions.

Richmond

Richmond had a steadier month than the region as a whole. Sales were up year over year in every category: detached (65 vs. 55), townhouse (48 vs. 43), and apartment (110 vs. 93).

• Townhouses: benchmark of $1,025,000, up 0.3% from August and down 2.3% from a year ago, holding up better than the regional townhouse figure of -4.7%.

• Apartments: benchmark of $635,600, down 9.1% over the year.

• Detached: benchmark of $1,871,100, down 8.5% over the year.

Burnaby

Burnaby's apartment segment is where the softness shows. Apartment sales were 121, compared with 175 a year earlier. Townhouse sales were 36 (vs. 43), and detached sales were essentially flat at 50 (vs. 49).

Townhouse benchmarks held reasonably well: Burnaby East at $857,900 (up 0.6% from August), Burnaby South at $942,100 (up 0.9%), and Burnaby North at $880,400 (down 0.9%). Apartment benchmarks are down between 5.5% and 8.3% over the year depending on the area.

What This Means for Buyers

You have more choice and more room to negotiate than you did a couple of years ago. Inventory is well above average, prices have eased, and for first-time buyers, apartments in particular offer a more accessible entry point than we've seen in a while.

If you're a condo owner thinking about moving up to a townhome, here's something worth knowing. In Richmond, the gap between the apartment benchmark and the townhouse benchmark is about $389,000 today. Townhouse prices have held up better than apartment prices, so that gap has widened a little over the past year. It doesn't mean the move can't work. It means the plan matters: your condo's value, your down payment, and your timing all need to be looked at together. Benchmarks are a guide, not a valuation of your specific home, so let's look at your actual numbers.

What This Means for Sellers

Pricing is everything right now. Buyers are informed, patient, and comparing carefully, so a price based on last year's sales or on the neighbour's asking price can leave a home sitting. Townhomes and detached homes are drawing steady end-user interest, while condo sellers will benefit most from sharp pricing, strong presentation, and realistic expectations. It's a market where good preparation shows.

The Bottom Line

This is a slower, more balanced market, and the story differs depending on property type and neighbourhood. That can feel stressful, but it also means there's real opportunity for buyers who are prepared and sellers who are well advised.

Whether you're buying your first place, thinking about moving from a condo to a townhome, or wondering what your home is worth today, I'm happy to walk through it with you. No pressure, just honest numbers. Reach out at nevillemak.ca.

If you own a condo in Richmond and you are thinking about selling it this fall to move up to a townhome, I want to talk to you about the single most important decision you will make in that entire process. It is not which townhome you buy. It is not the timing of your subjects or the length of your completion date. It is the price you put on your condo when you list it.

Industry data from September 2026 shows that homes priced within one percent of their eventual sale value are selling in an average of 22 days. Homes priced more than five percent above their market value are taking 71 days on average.

Read those two numbers side by side. Twenty-two days versus 71 days. That is not a small difference in outcome. That is the difference between a clean, controlled transaction where you move into your townhome on a timeline you chose and a drawn-out, stressful process where you are chasing the market down, reducing your price multiple times, and trying to write offers on townhomes while your condo is still sitting.

The Richmond condo market right now has 933 active listings with an absorption rate of 5.9 percent. Your buyer has options. They are comparing your unit against multiple other condos in your building, in your neighbourhood, and across the city. They have time to walk away and come back to something else. In that environment, a seller who prices their condo at exactly what the market will bear moves it in 22 days. A seller who prices five percent above that same number sits for 71 days, usually ends up selling for less than they would have at the right price from day one, and often watches the townhome they wanted get sold to someone else while they wait.

I have watched this play out too many times to stay quiet about it.

Here is what pricing correctly in the current Richmond condo market actually requires. You need recent comparable sales in your specific building and within a half kilometre radius, weighted by floor level, exposure, finishing quality, and strata fee structure. You need to understand what your competition looks like right now on MLS, not what it looked like three months ago when you first started thinking about selling. And you need to be honest with yourself about what your unit offers versus what is competing against it.

The average sold price for Richmond condos in the last 30 days is $675,736 with properties selling in 49 days. That 49 day average includes the sellers who priced correctly and sold in 22 days and the sellers who priced too high and are dragging the average up. The sellers in the first group are the ones who have already moved into their townhomes. The sellers in the second group are still on the market.

On the purchase side of the upsizing transaction, the picture is genuinely favourable right now. The composite benchmark price sits near $1.28 million, up modestly year-over-year but still below the 2022 peak. The attached home benchmark across Metro Vancouver is $1,028,800, down 4.4 percent year over year. Five year fixed mortgage rates are currently between 4.1 and 4.4 percent. The townhome you want has corrected from its peak and rates are workable. The only variable you fully control in the upsizing transaction is how you price your condo. Get that right and everything else becomes manageable. Get it wrong and you will spend the next two to three months watching a favourable market become less favourable while you sort it out.

In Richmond, the Hamilton and East Cambie neighbourhoods have already tightened into balanced market conditions with absorption rates of 13.6 and 12.9 percent respectively. The townhome product there is moving. If you are targeting those areas and your condo is priced correctly, you are in a position to be a serious buyer for a motivated townhome seller heading into October. If your condo is priced five percent above market, you are a spectator watching those opportunities close while you wait for an offer that may not come at the price you hoped for.

I price condos for sellers in Richmond and Burnaby every week. I know what the comparables look like, what buyers are actually paying, and what the gap is between aspirational pricing and market pricing in the current environment. If you are thinking about listing your condo this fall, that conversation should happen before you talk to anyone else. Reach out.

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

As of September 25, 2026, the lowest available five year fixed mortgage rate in Vancouver is 4.39 percent. The Bank of Canada's overnight rate has stabilized in the low three percent range following two cuts earlier this year. And the fall market in Richmond is now fully open with buyers back from summer and listings moving.

I want to put that rate in context for you because I think it changes the monthly payment math in a way that more people need to hear plainly.

The average rent in Vancouver has decreased by 4.9 percent year-over-year to $2,686 per month. Think about what that means sitting next to a purchase number. At a 4.39 percent five year fixed rate on a 30 year amortization, a buyer purchasing a Richmond condo at the current average sold price of $675,736 with 10 percent down is looking at a monthly mortgage payment in the range of $3,050 to $3,150. Add strata fees of $400 to $600 depending on the building, and you are looking at total monthly housing costs of roughly $3,450 to $3,750 for a property you own and are building equity in every single month.

That gap between renting and owning in Richmond is smaller right now than it has been at any point since 2020. And the rent number is not going to stay at $2,686 indefinitely.

The Richmond condo market right now still reads as a buyer's market. 933 active listings. 5.9 percent absorption rate. 49 days average on market. Prices trending up 9 percent versus the 90-day average. You have selection, you have negotiating room, and you have time to do proper due diligence before committing. The depreciation report is mandatory now as of July 1, 2026. Subject offers are being accepted. All of that is still available to a prepared buyer in September 2026.

Homes priced within one percent of their eventual sale value are selling in an average of 22 days in this market.That tells you sellers are getting serious about pricing now that the fall market is open and they know they are competing for a buyer pool that has real options. For a first-time buyer, a motivated seller who has priced correctly and needs to move is exactly the counterparty you want across the table.

The neighbourhood picture in Richmond matters here because the rate environment affects different price points differently. Brighouse South remains the most accessible entry point in the city at an average sold price of $566,280 with only 30 days on market. For a buyer whose budget sits at or below $650,000, the combination of that price point and a 4.39 percent mortgage rate makes the monthly payment calculation the most achievable it has been in years. East Cambie at 12.9 percent absorption and Hamilton at 13.6 percent have already tightened into balanced conditions, which tells you that the more accessible neighbourhoods are the ones to move on first before the recovery radiates further.

There were 4,100 new listings in August 2026, down three percent from last year and 1.3 percent below the 10-year August average. Still, 15,798 homes remained for sale across Greater Vancouver, which is 26.2 percent above the 10-year August average. There is still genuine selection in this market. But new supply is slowing. The inventory that exists today is not being replenished at the same rate. That combination of high current inventory and slowing new supply is exactly the condition that precedes a tightening market.

The programs available to first-time buyers have not changed. The First Home Savings Account and RRSP Home Buyers Plan give you up to $100,000 in tax-sheltered savings for your down payment. The GST rebate on new builds under one million dollars saves you up to $50,000. The 30 year amortization for insured mortgages is still available.

4.39 percent. That is the number. That is today's best available rate in Vancouver. Put it next to $675,736 average sold price in Richmond, 933 condos available, and 5.9 percent absorption, and tell me honestly whether the conditions for buying your first place in this city are going to get meaningfully better than this.

I do not think they are. But I would love to sit down and walk through your specific numbers with you so you can make that call with real information rather than just a feeling.

Reach out.

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

I want to talk about something this week that I think is the most important market dynamic for Richmond upsizers right now, and it is one that almost nobody is putting together in the way that I think it deserves.

Two things are happening in the Metro Vancouver market simultaneously. Condo markets are recovering. Seventy-five percent of townhome markets are still declining.

Read that again slowly because the implications for someone selling a condo to buy a townhome are significant.

If you own a condo in Richmond right now, you are sitting in a segment that is bouncing back. Sixty-seven percent of condo markets across Canada are currently rising, up from 50 percent just a month ago. In Richmond specifically, condo prices are trending up 9 percent versus the 90-day average. The buyers who sat out summer are coming back to the condo market first because it is the most accessible entry point in this city. Your asset is recovering.

At the same time, seventy-five percent of townhome markets nationally are still declining. Prices in that segment are still under pressure. The thing you want to buy has not found its floor yet in the way that condos have.

For an upsizer, that divergence is the most favourable possible configuration. You are selling into a recovering market and buying into one that is still correcting. Both sides of your transaction are moving in the direction that benefits you simultaneously. I have been doing this long enough to tell you that this kind of alignment does not happen often and it does not last long when it does.

Let me put some numbers around it so this feels concrete rather than abstract.

The Richmond condo market currently has 933 active listings with 55 sold in the last 30 days at an average sold price of $675,736, properties selling in 49 days, and an absorption rate of 5.9 percent. That is where you are selling from. Your condo has selection and demand returning to it.

The attached home benchmark across Metro Vancouver sits at $1,028,800 based on the August GVR data, down 4.4 percent year over year and essentially flat month over month. That is the townhome you are buying into. Still corrected. Still below peak. Still available with negotiating room.

In the city of Vancouver specifically, attached sales on the west side rose 12 percent month over month in August while East Vancouver fell almost 35 percent, showing how location-specific the recovery is becoming. Richmond and Burnaby townhomes are not in the frothy recovery category yet. The product you want is still available at prices that reflect the correction period we have been in, not the recovery period that is beginning.

In Richmond specifically, Hamilton and East Cambie have already moved into balanced market conditions with absorption rates of 13.6 and 12.9 percent respectively. But the broader Richmond townhome inventory remains well-stocked with 402 active listings across the city. There is still genuine selection in Hamilton, West Cambie, and the areas around Capstan Village. The window to find well-priced ground-oriented product with a garage and real square footage, while writing an offer with subjects and reasonable terms, is still open. It is just getting narrower.

The Burnaby picture is also worth noting here. The Edmonds and Metrotown corridors continue to offer townhome inventory that compares favourably to Richmond on a price-per-square-foot basis. If your commute patterns or school catchment preferences point you east, Burnaby may deliver more home for your money right now than a comparable Richmond address, and the same dynamic applies: condo recovering, townhome still under pressure, which means the spread between your sell and your buy is working in your favour in both cities.

Sellers who list in the last week of August and first two weeks of September routinely capture attention before the flood of fall inventory hits MLS, and the window for that timing is still partially open in late September. If you have been thinking about listing your condo and making the move, the combination of returning condo demand and continued townhome softness makes the next four to six weeks one of the most strategically favourable windows for an upsizing transaction that Richmond has seen in recent memory.

This is the kind of market alignment that I talk about when clients ask me to tell them honestly when the right time is. This is it. Not because I am trying to generate urgency. Because the data genuinely says so.

Reach out. Let's map out what your specific move looks like before both sides of this equation shift further.

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

I want to talk about something this week that I think is the most important market dynamic for Richmond upsizers right now, and it is one that almost nobody is putting together in the way that I think it deserves.

Two things are happening in the Metro Vancouver market simultaneously. Condo markets are recovering. Seventy-five percent of townhome markets are still declining.

Read that again slowly because the implications for someone selling a condo to buy a townhome are significant.

If you own a condo in Richmond right now, you are sitting in a segment that is bouncing back. Sixty-seven percent of condo markets across Canada are currently rising, up from 50 percent just a month ago. In Richmond specifically, condo prices are trending up 9 percent versus the 90-day average. The buyers who sat out summer are coming back to the condo market first because it is the most accessible entry point in this city. Your asset is recovering.

At the same time, seventy-five percent of townhome markets nationally are still declining. Prices in that segment are still under pressure. The thing you want to buy has not found its floor yet in the way that condos have.

For an upsizer, that divergence is the most favourable possible configuration. You are selling into a recovering market and buying into one that is still correcting. Both sides of your transaction are moving in the direction that benefits you simultaneously. I have been doing this long enough to tell you that this kind of alignment does not happen often and it does not last long when it does.

Let me put some numbers around it so this feels concrete rather than abstract.

The Richmond condo market currently has 933 active listings with 55 sold in the last 30 days at an average sold price of $675,736, properties selling in 49 days, and an absorption rate of 5.9 percent. That is where you are selling from. Your condo has selection and demand returning to it.

The attached home benchmark across Metro Vancouver sits at $1,028,800 based on the August GVR data, down 4.4 percent year over year and essentially flat month over month. That is the townhome you are buying into. Still corrected. Still below peak. Still available with negotiating room.

In the city of Vancouver specifically, attached sales on the west side rose 12 percent month over month in August while East Vancouver fell almost 35 percent, showing how location-specific the recovery is becoming. Richmond and Burnaby townhomes are not in the frothy recovery category yet. The product you want is still available at prices that reflect the correction period we have been in, not the recovery period that is beginning.

In Richmond specifically, Hamilton and East Cambie have already moved into balanced market conditions with absorption rates of 13.6 and 12.9 percent respectively. But the broader Richmond townhome inventory remains well-stocked with 402 active listings across the city. There is still genuine selection in Hamilton, West Cambie, and the areas around Capstan Village. The window to find well-priced ground-oriented product with a garage and real square footage, while writing an offer with subjects and reasonable terms, is still open. It is just getting narrower.

The Burnaby picture is also worth noting here. The Edmonds and Metrotown corridors continue to offer townhome inventory that compares favourably to Richmond on a price-per-square-foot basis. If your commute patterns or school catchment preferences point you east, Burnaby may deliver more home for your money right now than a comparable Richmond address, and the same dynamic applies: condo recovering, townhome still under pressure, which means the spread between your sell and your buy is working in your favour in both cities.

Sellers who list in the last week of August and first two weeks of September routinely capture attention before the flood of fall inventory hits MLS, and the window for that timing is still partially open in late September. If you have been thinking about listing your condo and making the move, the combination of returning condo demand and continued townhome softness makes the next four to six weeks one of the most strategically favourable windows for an upsizing transaction that Richmond has seen in recent memory.

This is the kind of market alignment that I talk about when clients ask me to tell them honestly when the right time is. This is it. Not because I am trying to generate urgency. Because the data genuinely says so.

Reach out. Let's map out what your specific move looks like before both sides of this equation shift further.

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

I want to talk about something specific this week that I think upsizers in Richmond are not paying close enough attention to.

The neighbourhood-level data for Richmond condos and townhomes just shifted in a way that matters. While the city-wide Richmond condo market sits at a 5.9 percent absorption rate and is still technically in buyer's market territory, two specific neighbourhoods have already moved past that designation.

East Cambie sits at a 12.9 percent absorption rate. Hamilton is at 13.6 percent. Both of those numbers put them squarely in balanced market conditions by GVR's own framework, which defines balanced as the range where neither buyers nor sellers hold a clear advantage. East Cambie has 31 active listings with 4 sold in the last 30 days at an average price of $859,000 and 27 days on market. Hamilton has 66 active listings with 9 sold at an average of $1,069,867 and 63 days on market.

Why does this matter for upsizers specifically?

Because Hamilton and East Cambie are two of the most important neighbourhoods for anyone thinking about stepping up from a condo to a townhome in Richmond. These are the areas where the ground-oriented product that upsizers want, the newer builds with garages, EV charging, proper floor plans, and outdoor space, is concentrated. And these are the areas where the market is tightening first, moving out of buyer's territory and into balanced conditions while the rest of Richmond still appears soft on the surface.

This is exactly how real estate market recovery works. It does not happen all at once across an entire city. It starts in the most desirable and supply-constrained sub-markets and radiates outward. Hamilton and East Cambie are showing you where Richmond is heading before the headline numbers catch up.

The broader Richmond condo market that you are selling into as an upsizer still gives you real leverage. The city-wide condo market has 933 active listings with only 55 sold in the last 30 days at an average sold price of $675,736, properties sitting 49 days on average, and an absorption rate of 5.9 percent. Your buyer pool has options and you need to price your condo correctly to capture attention in that environment. Homes priced within one percent of their eventual sale value are selling in an average of 22 days in this market. Homes priced more than five percent above market value are taking 71 days on average and typically selling for less than they would have if they had been priced right from day one. That math is unforgiving and it is the most important thing I tell condo sellers right now.

But here is the thing about the upsizing math that changes when the neighbourhood you are buying into moves from buyer to balanced. The negotiating room compresses. The days on market shrinks. The sense of time pressure that gave you the upper hand as a buyer in Hamilton six months ago is diminishing. An absorption rate of 13.6 percent in Hamilton means that of every 100 townhomes listed, nearly 14 are selling each month. That is not a market where sellers are sitting and waiting for a low offer. That is a market where a well-priced townhome is being transacted within a reasonable timeline, which means you need to be ready to move when you find the right one.

The overall picture for a Richmond upsizer right now is still compelling. Richmond condo prices are trending up 9 percent versus the 90-day average, which means the equity position in your current place may be stronger than you assumed. The condo you are selling is still in a market that gives buyers choice and negotiating room. And the townhome you are stepping into is in the early stages of a tightening that, if the trajectory continues, will make conditions less favourable for buyers as fall progresses into winter.

The composite benchmark price sits near $1.28 million, up modestly year-over-year but still below the 2022 peak. Detached home average price increased by 2.6 percent year-over-year. Attached home average price decreased by 3.5 percent year-over-year to $1.18 million. The townhome segment still has room to run on the upside from a value perspective. You are not buying at a recovered price. You are buying at a price that reflects a meaningful discount from the 2022 peak while the segments around it are starting to move.

If you have been thinking about the move from your Richmond condo to a townhome and you have been watching Hamilton or East Cambie specifically, the data is telling you to stop watching and start acting. I can show you what is available, what the strata documents look like on the buildings I would and would not recommend, and what a competitive offer looks like in a balanced market. Reach out.

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

I want to start this week with a number that I do not think is getting nearly enough attention.

Richmond condo prices are trending up 9 percent compared to the 90-day average.

Not year over year. Not some forward projection. The current 30-day average sold price against the 90-day average is showing a 9 percent upward trend right now in September 2026. That is the sharpest short-term price movement I have seen in this segment all year and it is happening while the broader market narrative is still focused on buyer's market conditions and elevated inventory.

Let me give you the full picture so this makes sense. Richmond currently has 933 active condo listings with 55 sold in the last 30 days at an average sold price of $675,736. Properties are selling in 49 days on average and the absorption rate sits at 5.9 percent. By definition, this is still a buyer's market. There is more supply than demand, buyers have greater choice and negotiating power, and prices may still be flexible. That is true. But the 9 percent upward price trend sitting underneath those conditions is telling you something important about where the market is heading.

What this data is showing is a classic early-stage recovery pattern. The overall market conditions still look like a buyer's market on the surface metrics. Days on market elevated. Absorption rate below the 15 percent threshold for a balanced market. Plenty of active listings. But the actual prices being achieved on the properties that are selling are moving meaningfully higher than they were 90 days ago. That divergence between static market condition labels and moving price data is exactly what happens when demand starts returning before the inventory overhang has fully cleared.

Five year fixed mortgage rates are now hovering between 4.1 and 4.4 percent, and that combination has brought buyers who spent the past two years on the sidelines back into the conversation. Those buyers are landing first in the most accessible segments of the market, which in Metro Vancouver means condos and specifically condos along the Canada Line corridor in Richmond where transit access and long-term resale demand are consistently strong.

I want to look at the neighbourhood breakdown because it tells a more specific story than the city-wide numbers. Brighouse leads Richmond condo activity with 530 active listings, 27 sold in the last 30 days, an absorption rate of 5.1 percent, and an average sold price of $798,470. East Cambie is showing a 12.9 percent absorption rate, which puts it in balanced market territory, with an average sold price of $859,000. Hamilton is at 13.6 percent absorption, also balanced, at an average of $1,069,867.

That neighbourhood-level data matters enormously for a first-time buyer trying to understand where value exists right now. Brighouse South has 131 active listings with only 5 sold in 30 days and an average price of $566,280. That is the most accessible price point in Richmond right now with the most selection. For a first-time buyer whose budget sits under $650,000, Brighouse South is where I would be looking hardest right now before the 9 percent price trend pushes those entry-level units out of reach.

The fall market is fully open. The buyers who sat out summer are back. And the data is telling you that the properties being transacted right now are selling at meaningfully higher prices than they were three months ago even though the listing inventory has not dramatically changed. That is demand returning before supply has shrunk. That is the last comfortable window before this market starts to feel competitive again.

The programs available to you as a first-time buyer have not changed. The First Home Savings Account and RRSP Home Buyers Plan still give you access to up to $100,000 in tax-sheltered savings for your down payment. The 30 year amortization for insured mortgages is still available. The GST rebate on new builds under one million dollars still saves you up to $50,000.

What has changed is the price trend. And a 9 percent upward move in 90 days is not something you can afford to ignore if you have been planning to buy in Richmond.

If you want to understand what your specific buying power looks like right now and which buildings and neighbourhoods make the most sense for your situation, reach out. I am here.

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

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

As of August 23, 2026, something has quietly shifted in the Greater Vancouver market that I think every Richmond and Burnaby condo owner thinking about upsizing needs to understand.

Buyer confidence has returned. Interest rates have stabilized after the Bank of Canada's extended cutting cycle. And inventory in key neighbourhoods is thinning heading into the traditional September rebound. That combination is what a market inflection point looks like before it becomes obvious to everyone. And right now, Richmond is sitting right in the middle of one.

Let me give you the specific numbers.

Richmond currently has 402 active townhome listings with a median asking price of $1.1 million. The average sold price across all Richmond property types is $950,000, down 19 percent from August 2025. The condo segment has 942 active listings with a median asking price of $668,000. Both sides of the upsizing equation are meaningfully corrected from their peaks and sitting at the most accessible price points we have seen in this city in several years.

Here is what the inflection point means for you practically.

Active listings across Greater Vancouver are down roughly nine percent from the July 2025 peak. That inventory is drawing down. At the same time, analysts tracking the market are noting that buyers who sat out 2024 and 2025 are now watching and worrying about missing another cycle. That fear of missing out is not at 2021 levels but it is beginning to build, and it concentrates first in the most accessible and in-demand segments. In Richmond and Burnaby, that means the townhome segment specifically.

The data on Burnaby is worth noting here. Burnaby North and South are showing townhome demand that is exceptional, with benchmark prices up 5.2 percent year over year in that segment. That is not a buyer's market figure. That is a segment where supply and demand are rebalancing faster than the broader narrative suggests. If you have been watching Burnaby townhomes as part of your upsizing search and you have been waiting for conditions to get better, the data is telling you that window may have already shifted in that sub-market.

For Richmond specifically, the fall market brings a dynamic that most people underestimate. September through mid-November is historically when the widest selection of townhomes is available in the city for the year. Sellers who wanted to be done before summer listed in spring. Sellers who were watching the market through summer are now listing for the fall push. And buyers who have been waiting come back at the same time. That overlap of fresh inventory and returning buyer interest creates a window where you can find well-priced product and still negotiate sensibly, as long as you are not competing against a wave of buyers who all had the same idea a month later.

The financial picture for a Richmond upsizer right now is more manageable than most people assume before we actually sit down and model it. Median condo asking price of $668,000 on the sell side. Median townhome asking price of $1.1 million on the buy side. That is a gap of roughly $432,000. Depending on your down payment, the equity you have built in your current condo, and what your mortgage looks like at current rates of approximately 4.15 to 4.45 percent on a five year fixed, the monthly payment difference between where you are and where you want to be is often in the range of $800 to $1,400 a month for an additional 600 to 800 square feet of living space, a garage, outdoor space, and the ability to actually live the way you want to live. For a lot of families and couples in Richmond who have been feeling the squeeze of condo living, that number is worth taking seriously.

The mechanics of the transition still matter enormously. Pricing your condo correctly from day one. Having your financing in order before you start making offers on townhomes. Understanding what the strata documents look like on the place you want to buy. Knowing which Hamilton or West Cambie buildings have well-managed stratas and which ones come with deferred maintenance surprises. That is where having someone who works in this market every day makes a real difference.

The next eight weeks in Richmond are worth paying attention to. If you are ready to have a real conversation about what your move looks like, reach out.

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

As of August 23, 2026, something has quietly shifted in the Greater Vancouver market that I think every Richmond and Burnaby condo owner thinking about upsizing needs to understand.

Buyer confidence has returned. Interest rates have stabilized after the Bank of Canada's extended cutting cycle. And inventory in key neighbourhoods is thinning heading into the traditional September rebound. That combination is what a market inflection point looks like before it becomes obvious to everyone. And right now, Richmond is sitting right in the middle of one.

Let me give you the specific numbers.

Richmond currently has 402 active townhome listings with a median asking price of $1.1 million. The average sold price across all Richmond property types is $950,000, down 19 percent from August 2025. The condo segment has 942 active listings with a median asking price of $668,000. Both sides of the upsizing equation are meaningfully corrected from their peaks and sitting at the most accessible price points we have seen in this city in several years.

Here is what the inflection point means for you practically.

Active listings across Greater Vancouver are down roughly nine percent from the July 2025 peak. That inventory is drawing down. At the same time, analysts tracking the market are noting that buyers who sat out 2024 and 2025 are now watching and worrying about missing another cycle. That fear of missing out is not at 2021 levels but it is beginning to build, and it concentrates first in the most accessible and in-demand segments. In Richmond and Burnaby, that means the townhome segment specifically.

The data on Burnaby is worth noting here. <cite index="22-1">Burnaby North and South are showing townhome demand that is exceptional, with benchmark prices up 5.2 percent year over year in that segment.</cite> That is not a buyer's market figure. That is a segment where supply and demand are rebalancing faster than the broader narrative suggests. If you have been watching Burnaby townhomes as part of your upsizing search and you have been waiting for conditions to get better, the data is telling you that window may have already shifted in that sub-market.

For Richmond specifically, the fall market brings a dynamic that most people underestimate. September through mid-November is historically when the widest selection of townhomes is available in the city for the year. Sellers who wanted to be done before summer listed in spring. Sellers who were watching the market through summer are now listing for the fall push. And buyers who have been waiting come back at the same time. That overlap of fresh inventory and returning buyer interest creates a window where you can find well-priced product and still negotiate sensibly, as long as you are not competing against a wave of buyers who all had the same idea a month later.

The financial picture for a Richmond upsizer right now is more manageable than most people assume before we actually sit down and model it. Median condo asking price of $668,000 on the sell side. Median townhome asking price of $1.1 million on the buy side. That is a gap of roughly $432,000. Depending on your down payment, the equity you have built in your current condo, and what your mortgage looks like at current rates of approximately 4.15 to 4.45 percent on a five year fixed, the monthly payment difference between where you are and where you want to be is often in the range of $800 to $1,400 a month for an additional 600 to 800 square feet of living space, a garage, outdoor space, and the ability to actually live the way you want to live. For a lot of families and couples in Richmond who have been feeling the squeeze of condo living, that number is worth taking seriously.

The mechanics of the transition still matter enormously. Pricing your condo correctly from day one. Having your financing in order before you start making offers on townhomes. Understanding what the strata documents look like on the place you want to buy. Knowing which Hamilton or West Cambie buildings have well-managed stratas and which ones come with deferred maintenance surprises. That is where having someone who works in this market every day makes a real difference.

The next eight weeks in Richmond are worth paying attention to. If you are ready to have a real conversation about what your move looks like, reach out.

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

I want to talk about timing today because I think a lot of Richmond and Burnaby condo owners who have been considering the move up to a townhome are about to face a decision point that is worth thinking through carefully.

The fall real estate market in Metro Vancouver typically reactivates in September. Listings pick up. Buyers who spent August on the sidelines come back. The energy in the market shifts noticeably from the quieter summer pace. And this year, there is a specific dynamic layered on top of that seasonal pattern that I think changes the calculus for upsizers in a meaningful way.

CMHC's 2026 housing market outlook projects that buyers will act ahead of expected higher mortgage rates in 2027. Let me be clear about what that means in practice. If that projection is accurate, the fall of 2026 is going to see a wave of demand from people who have been sitting on the fence, who have watched the market stabilize, who have seen rates hold steady at manageable levels, and who have decided that waiting any longer carries more risk than acting. That demand coming back into the market simultaneously is what shifts conditions from buyer-friendly to something more competitive.

We are already seeing early signals of this. Realtors across the Greater Vancouver region are reporting multiple offer situations returning on well-priced properties under $1.8 million.Burnaby North and South are showing townhome demand that is exceptional, with benchmark prices up 5.2 percent year over year in that segment. These are not widespread market-wide conditions yet. But they are appearing in the exact segments and locations that Richmond and Burnaby upsizers are shopping in.

Here is the picture as I see it from where I sit in this market every day.

The Richmond market right now still has 2,059 active listings with an absorption rate of 5.4 percent and an average sold price of $1,136,078. Properties are selling in 40 days on average. That is still a buyer's market by definition. The townhome segment specifically has 403 active listings, an absorption rate of 8.7 percent, and an average sold price of $1,025,442, with homes selling in 33 days. Prices in the townhome segment are already up 1.3 percent from the 90-day average.

If you are selling a condo to buy a townhome, the question is not just about the market for the thing you are buying. It is about the market for the thing you are selling. Right now the condo segment is soft. Apartment sales across Metro Vancouver fell 17.8 percent year over year in July, the steepest decline of any property type. If CMHC's 2027 rate projection brings buyers back into the market in September and October, that softness in the apartment segment is one of the first things that changes. The buyers who have been sitting out the condo market come back first because condos are the most accessible entry point for people who have been waiting on the sidelines.

What that means for you as an upsizer is that your condo may be easier to sell in October than it is today, but the townhome you are trying to buy may also be more competitive in October than it is today. The two sides of your transaction do not necessarily move in your favour at the same time.

This is the nuance that I think most people miss when they think about timing. It is not just about when the market is best for buyers. It is about the window where the condo you are selling and the townhome you are buying are both in conditions that work for your transition simultaneously. That window exists right now and the data suggests it may begin to close as fall approaches.

I am not telling you to panic. Upsizing is a significant decision and it needs to make sense for your life, your finances, and your timeline. What I am saying is that if you have been planning to make this move and you have been waiting for a reason to start the process, the combination of current market conditions and the forward-looking rate environment is a reasonable reason to start now rather than in three months.

Properties that are sitting past 30 days on a properly-priced listing currently mean room to negotiate three to seven percent off the list price. On a $1.1 million townhome, that negotiating room is $33,000 to $77,000. That is the kind of number that changes what your transition looks like financially.

If you want to sit down and map out what your upsizing move looks like from start to finish before the fall market kicks in, reach out. I work in Richmond and Burnaby every day and I can give you a clear, honest picture of where you stand.

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