ONE WORD DEFINED VIREB’S HOUSING MARKET IN 2025: RESILIENCE

The Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) recorded 7,620 unit sales (all property types) in 2025 compared to 7,473 in 2024. There were 412 unit sales in December 2025, down six percent from one year ago. Active listings last month were 3,075, up seven percent year over year.

In the single-family category (excluding acreage and waterfront), 215 homes sold in December, down four percent from one year ago and 17 percent from November. Sales of condo apartments last month came in at 37, decreasing by 16 percent year over year and down 26 percent from November. In the row/townhouse category, 47 units changed hands in December, down 18 percent from one year ago and 11 percent from November.

Active listings of single-family homes were 837 in December, up from 829 one year ago. VIREB’s inventory of condo apartments was 319 last month, increasing from the 271 properties listed in December 2024. There were 259 row/townhouses for sale last month compared to 195 the previous year.

Despite early economic headwinds in 2025, including inflation concerns and uncertainty around global trade, VIREB’s housing market proved notably resilient, particularly when compared with conditions in Vancouver and on the Lower Mainland. While some volatility occurred, the overall economic fallout was less severe than expected, allowing the VIREB market to close the year with modest growth.

“If there’s one word that defines our 2025 housing market, it’s resilience,” says VIREB CEO Jason Yochim. “We began the year bracing for economic disruption, from global trade tensions to lingering inflation, but the impact was far less dramatic than many feared.”

Yochim adds that Vancouver Island continues to benefit from its appeal as a destination for retirees and long-term lifestyle buyers, which helps buffer the region from sharper swings seen elsewhere in B.C.

“While interest-rate cuts in 2026 are unlikely and uncertainty remains, particularly with the upcoming CUSMA review and unpredictability of U.S. politics, we’re feeling optimistic about the stability of our local market,” notes Yochim.

Moving on to prices, the board-wide benchmark price (MLS® Home Price Index) of a single-family home was $773,000 in December 2025, up one percent from one year ago. In the apartment category, the benchmark price was $405,400 last month, up three percent from the previous December. The benchmark price of a townhouse in December was $537,200, down two percent from one year ago.

In Campbell River, the benchmark price of a single-family home was $670,900 last month, a slight drop from the previous year. The Comox Valley’s year-over-year benchmark price rose by two percent to $847,200. In the Cowichan Valley, the benchmark price was $752,700, up one percent from December 2024. Nanaimo’s year-over-year benchmark price dropped by two percent to $794,700, while the Parksville-Qualicum area saw its benchmark price increase by three percent to $903,200. The cost of a benchmark single-family home in Port Alberni was $542,600, up six percent from the previous year. For the North Island, the benchmark price of a single-family home dropped by three percent to $432,100.

(Article courtesy of the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board - excluding the Victoria Board Area)