Vancouver’s luxury home market is still soft, according to the latest report from Royal LePage, but that doesn’t mean prices are dropping.
The real estate group says sales in the segment are down almost 40 per cent through the first eight months of the year, compared to the same time last year.
But prices barely fell — by less than two per cent — to a little under $7 million.
The report considers $ 5.5 million to be the entry-level price for Vancouver’s luxury market. It says from January to the end of August, the median luxury home price in Vancouver was $6,975,000 — the highest in the country.
For comparison, the median in Toronto over the same period was $5,820,000.
“In Vancouver’s luxury segment, it seems everyone is trying to time the bottom of the market. As such, we’ve seen a slowdown in activity of late. After all, buyers love to buy when others are buying,” said a sales representative for the company.
He says a “pullback” in Vancouver’s luxury market began about eight years ago, and activity has never fully rebounded.
“The implementation of the 2023 foreign buyer ban, which has limited residential real estate purchases by non-Canadians, has reduced demand, although it has not had a material impact on prices,” he added.
Royal Lepage expects moderate activity levels through the fall, despite the likelihood of additional interest rate cuts.