Downtown Victoria’s condominium market remains firmly in the buyer’s favour after more than three years of increasingly challenging conditions for sellers, while the pre-sale industry - which has not launched a project in the city centre since 2022 - is expected to maintain its holding pattern on new inventory until 2027 at the earliest.

 

Last spring, Citified reported on emerging opportunities Victoria’s downtown core presented for buyers eyeing a unit within the Capital’s dominant condominium node, where social issues, provincial and federal home buying taxes or restrictions, and an exodus of investor dollars have cooled demand and reset expectations much to the benefit of new market entrants.

 

With so many of downtown Victoria’s residential property values historically buoyed by what became known as AirBnB or short-term rental potential, and investors eyeing condominium holdings as safe long-term rental investments, recent provincial changes to short-term rental regulations adopted by municipalities have clashed with property owners. The changes helped propel a demand reversal that was already underway thanks to Residential Tenancy Act and annual rent increase changes that had a tendency to more acutely impact mom-and-pop landlords (a buyer group that has historically represented a notable portion of condominium purchasers in Victoria’s urban core).

 

Additionally, the introduction of punitive taxes on properties considered to be secondary homes of non-local owners who often filled their unit’s vacant periods through short-term rental arrangements, further impacted some owners and turned away would-be buyers.

 

As a predictable result, valuations for downtown condominiums that had benefited from decades of relatively laissez-faire zoning and lax municipal oversight were no longer en vogue among investors, sending a strong signal to sellers that a buyer’s market had arrived.

 

 

“Condominium owners that purchased suites in buildings where short-term rentals were grandfathered by the City of Victoria since 2017, for which they would have paid a higher per-foot premium whether or not their homes were to be used as such, saw the market value of their asset fall due to Provincial regulations,” says Victoria realtor Ryan Cook (see website) of brokerage Remax Camosun.

 

“The Provincial government’s backtracking on short-term rental permissions sanctioned by the City of Victoria and the senior goveronment's introduction of punitive taxes targeting buyers from out-of-town or vacation property owners, inadvertently focused a great deal of policy change on a highly concentrated part of Victoria dominated by condominiums, and in so doing, made conditions much more volatile and unpredictable for sellers through no fault of their own,” Cook added.

 

The Province’s agenda also sent a market-wide tremor felt throughout much of BC that has led to a drop in real-estate transactions, as macro factors etched into Canada’s national real-estate picture since early 2025 also contributed to the average price drop of a Greater Victoria condominium by more than 5.2% between 2022 and 2025, when the annual averages according to the Victoria Real Estate Board (VREB) were $642,826 and $609,243, respectively.

 

Specifically to the downtown sub-market, VREB data shows prices averaging $653,463 in 2022 across 407 sales (priced 1.65% higher than the regional average), and by 2025, the average over 370 sales fell more than 10% to $584,404 (4.08% lower than the regional average), all the while typical days-on-market of an active listing on the Multiple Listings Service (MLS) more than doubled by 2025 to nearly 50. The medians in the downtown core for 2022 and 2025 were $585,900 and $510,000, respectively, yielding a drop of 13%.

 

With that data in hand, the trajectory for the south Island’s condominium market suggests sellers are still listing into a playing field dominated by buyer control, a trend expected to continue into 2026.

 

“With so much re-balancing having occurred between 2022 and 2025, we anticipate sellers to apply a strategic, price-conscious approach to their listings for this year’s spring buying season, and this is absolutely good news for buyers especially with fundamentals remaining so strong for the overall health of the downtown core when viewed through a medium term lense,” Cook notes, adding that “2026 may represent a landing for downtown condominium prices, and there may even be upside price pressure if interest rates see a downward tick this year, along with only re-sale inventory available to buyers with no pre-sale options on the table.”

 

The current MLS listings landscape is shown here for one-bedroom inventory, here for two-bedroom suites, and here for three-bedroom suites. The variety on offer currently is quite remarkable, and gives buyers plenty to choose from and consider when collating options and writing offers.

 

 

Cook further says, that even if prices remain stable through 2026 and into 2027, equity is just as important as appreciation, as buyers pay down their mortgage and have the ability to carry equity into future real-estate purchases like townhomes and single-family dwellings.

 

“Apart from a rising market, by paying down a mortgage, buyers build equity, and that equity over a period of five years can be significant, and you can put that equity to work as you climb up the real-estate ladder,” Cook says. “The key, of course, is buying at a good price, and with downtown Victoria’s market lagging the broader market by 4%, that shows us that plenty of up-side is built in to today’s softened prices specifically for downtown units.” 

 

Another angle to consider, is unlike new-build inventory, which is predominantly priced without factoring in GST, buyers of re-sale properties can realize an immediate advantage, and for some purchasers, there are first-time buyer incentives through reduced or completely removed property transfer tax.

 

Victoria’s city centre is undergoing a boom in rental units. As reported by Citified in February of this year, under construction purpose-built rental inventory as of the time of the article was a staggering 2,300 suites that will target price points right across the market spectrum. The amount of change that this level of construction activity will deliver is considered profoundly positive for downtown. And with most of the new homes rising above commercial ground floors, quality retailers will respond to ‘class-A’ spaces arriving in tandem with a rapidly densifying downtown core.

 

Projects like Starlight Developments’ first phase of Harris Green Village where the Ensign Chrysler (subsequently Harris-branded) auto dealership operated for decades, will add more than 500 units of rental homes to Yates Street at Cook Street. And right across the street, Chard Developments’ two-tower investment at the former Pacific Mazda automotive dealership lands will bring just under 500 suites. Some 500 more are underway on Douglas Street at Caledonia Avenue, also under the banner of Chard Developments. And then there are the smaller, but equally as meaningful developments sprinkled throughout downtown.

 

“The list of positives for downtown Victoria is long and meaningful, and as so many of our communities work towards solutions for social problems that predominantly impact the traditional downtown zones of our cities, we have to keep in mind how much is going on around us that will drive the local economy and deliver social change,” Cook says.

 

Additionally, major projects like Reliance Properties’ Capital District in the north end of downtown are expected to revive a currently under-utilized part of the core, bringing many hundreds of additional residents to the area. And so much more is in the works totalling thousands of residential units expected in the 2030s, such as Jawl Properties’ rental tower opposite Starlight’s Yates and Cook project on a former Volvo automotive dealership site, and the subsequent two phases of Harris Green Village.

 

And what’s great for the rental industry as a whole, is also great for real-estate purchasers, Cook says.

 

“Consider the positives of thousands of new residents just in the area around Yates and Cook streets. The vibrant benefits of so much concentrated investment and residential density will spill over to the condominium market through new public plazas, new retail amenities and where investment flows, nearby property owners stand to benefit."

 

Cook’s key takeaways for this year's spring buying season are as follows for buyers eyeing an entry point in downtown Victoria:

 

"We are fortunate that so much of downtown Victoria’s condominium inventory is comprised of units in concrete buildings, That’s an advantage over woodframed buildings we often see in the suburbs. Concrete projects are known for their build quality, and yet, they are trading below market value when compared to suburban alternatives often built out of wood. That in itself is a key point to consider, and a material, long-term advantage for downtown condominium buyers.”

 

As for what to look for, Cook’s advice, depending on budget, is to focus on listings in concrete buildings that still have their 2-5-10 home warranty in place for peace of mind. “If you can find a suite in a newer concrete building, which is still under warranty, you’re not only saving the GST payment, you’re likely to pay well under the price of what that unit would cost to build and deliver in today’s high cost construction and labour market. Use that to your advantage, and remember, downtown inventory was priced about 4% below the rest of the region, according to 2025 data from the VREB. There is real value there if you have a longer term outlook for downtown, and recognize the positives behind all of the change we're seeing in the city.”

 

To be successful in any real-estate market, practical expectations play the biggest role in ensuring a timely and positive seller experience. But miscalculate the listing price, and as a seller you can be in for a frustrating, prolonged sales program that may complicate your future plans and have financial repercussions down the line.

 

Cook’s advice for sellers is to hone in on the undertones of the current market, and price accordingly.

 

“Know what you're offering relative to what other sellers have on the market. If your suite has an average layout, an average view and is in an average building, be realistic in your expectations. Draw interest through staging, a refresh, and put your best foot forward on price. Differentiators like a parking stall, great in-building amenities, rooftop common areas and gas appliances really do make a difference, so try to capitalize on those differences,” Cook suggests, further noting that two-bedroom suites are more desirable in the current market, and are selling faster given their target buyer is more often the end-user rather than investors. However, one-bedroom floorplans can also be a hit with buyers, particularly when appropriately priced in well designed, well-managed buildings that also appeal to the investor buyer.

 

“With the latter in mind, I urge sellers to have a plan in place for what they are hoping to achieve after the sale. Are they looking to climb the ladder into a larger home? Have they already made an offer on another home? Are they ok with renting after they sell, and is that in their budget? These are all factors that can impact how quickly a seller needs to move a property. In 2025 we saw just under 50 days on market as the average sales period downtown, and following that, sellers must also plan for the closing period, which can take anywhere from one to several months, but the buyer may also have a condition to close on the purchase well beyond that range. Be prepared for this ahead of time and work it into your strategy.”

 

In closing, Victoria’s downtown core is experiencing a buyer’s market. This requires sellers to find creative ways to get noticed, and it demands a reasonable approach to price expectations. For buyers, opportunities under a buyer’s market in Greater Victoria do not come along often. But when they do, they can present buyers with doubts and concerns about the future value of their purchase. To that, Cook suggests the following:

 

“Take the time to research what is going on downtown. Walk the area, see the active construction sites, take a look at the quality of the architecture of recently completed projects, have a feel for the vibrancy of the city centre on a weekend night. The market in Victoria’s core is uniquely positioned in favour of buyers currently, and that represents tremendous opportunity if you take the time to make smart decisions with the guidance of a real-estate professiona .” C

 

 

 

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