Vancouver home sales tick 2% lower in July with market ‘turning a corner’: board

After a number of slow months, the real estate market in Greater Vancouver is showing signs of life.

Vancouver-area home sales were down two per cent in July compared with last year, as the city’s real estate board says it continues to believe the market is showing early signs of recovery.

Greater Vancouver Realtors said residential sales in the region totalled 2,286 last month, down from the 2,333 sales recorded in July 2024 and 13.9 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average.

The board’s director of economics and data analytics Andrew Lis said the figures confirm that the market has turned a corner after months of slow activity spurred by the Canada-U.S. trade war.

“Although the Bank of Canada held the policy rate steady in July, this decision could help bolster sales activity by providing more certainty surrounding borrowing costs at a time where economic uncertainty lingers due to ongoing trade negotiations with the USA,” Lis said in a press release.

Year-over-year sales were down around 10 per cent in June, roughly half of the decline recorded in May.

The composite benchmark price in July was $1,165,300, down 2.7 per cent from a year earlier and 0.7 per cent lower than June.

There were 5,642 newly listed properties on the market in July, a 0.8 per cent increase from last year and 12.4 per cent above the 10-year seasonal average.

Total active listings rose 19.8 per cent year-over-year to 17,168, which was 40.2 per cent above usual levels for the month.

“Although sales activity is now recovering, this healthy level of inventory is sufficient to keep home prices trending sideways over the short term as supply and demand remain relatively balanced,” said Lis.

“However, if the recovery in sales activity accelerates, these favourable conditions for home buyers may begin slowly slipping away, as inventory levels decline, and home sellers gain more bargaining power.”

Sales in the detached homes category were down 4.1 per cent year-over-year to 660 last month, while 2.9 per cent fewer apartments changed hands at 1,158.

There were 459 attached home sales, a five per cent increase compared with July 2024.

This report by Sammy Hudes, The Canadian Press, was first published Aug. 5, 2025.