The current market rebalancing comes against a backdrop of higher mortgage rates. Rates dropped to record lows as part of economic stimulus policies intended to support the Canadian economy during lockdown.

The higher rates and mortgage payments mean Canadians can’t afford to spend as much on housing, and unless there is a significant recession, we can’t expect rates to ever fall to the record lows again. This is the new normal.

If less borrowing capacity is holding buyers on the sidelines, and lower rates are not an option. Lower prices might be what is needed to bring buyers back into the market. Higher incomes would also do the trick. However, governments, sellers, and developers would have difficulty influencing those upward in the face of a trade war.

An Opening for Buyers?

The current slowdown may be especially attractive for buyers accustomed to Vancouver’s hypercompetitive condo scene.

More listings, longer selling times, and stable pricing present a rare chance to enter the market on less frantic terms. For these buyers, 2025 could offer the kind of conditions that have been largely absent for the past decade.

Developers might offer perks like a parking spot or storage locker rather than lowering prices, but pre-sale buyers should consider that new homes and pre-sales are charged 5 percent sales tax. A tax that is not levied on previously owned properties.

Timing the market remains notoriously difficult. Vancouver’s housing market has repeatedly defied predictions of downturns.

A Rare Moment of Balance

For now, the condo apartment market in Vancouver is best described as balanced, and the momentum is clearly edging further toward buyers. The increase in inventory, softening demand, and stable prices have created a narrow window of opportunity for those ready to make a move.

Whether this balance will hold, or quickly swing back toward sellers as it has in the past, remains uncertain. But in a city that rarely favours the buyer, the present moment may be as good as it gets for condo hunters looking to gain an upper hand.