As of February, the benchmark price for a detached, single-family home in Greater Victoria was $1,150,600, up 1.3 per cent from this January, but down 1.4 per cent from February, 2025. According to data from the Victoria Real Estate Board, the benchmark price passed $1-million in 2021 and it has bounced up and down a little ever since.
So what kind of single-family home can you buy right now in British Columbia’s capital for just over a million bucks?
Three real estate markets that are bucking national trends
3070 Balfour Ave., Victoria
Asking price: $1,099,900
In the city, the benchmark price is about $200,000 higher than in the surrounding communities, so unsurprisingly, detached homes inside that boundary are typically modest in size if they are under $1.2-million.
This raised two-bedroom bungalow on Balfour Avenue – northwest of the downtown core near the Gorge Waterway – is like many properties at this price point. It is set up with a separate one-bedroom apartment in the basement, either as an income suite or for multigenerational living.
“In the last year, we’ve worked with someone looking to move mum in down below, and we’ve also seen it where mom and dad say: ‘My kids are struggling to pay rent,’” said Stefan Krenz, listing agent with Jonesco Real Estate Inc. Often his biggest challenge is convincing sellers they can’t get the price their neighbour sold for a few years back.
“We’re reverting back to the long-term trend line,” he said. “Some people who bought at the peak of the market paid prices they won’t see for quite a few years. But people buying now are buying on trend.”
2324 Malaview Ave., Sidney, B.C.
Asking price: $1,174,900
Victoria is sometimes described as Canada’s retirement community, and the area known as the Peninsula – north of the city near the regional airport – is often the target for folks from other provinces looking to move to B.C.
“In February, we hear a lot from our Ontario friends. When wind chill is minus 30, that gets our phone ringing,” said Terry Stockus, one half of a real estate team Stockus & Parry with David Parry at the Agency.
Some of the buyers she hears from are former snowbirds who used to fly south to the U.S. for the winter. “In the last two years, those who tended to winter in Palm Springs, Florida or Arizona are coming here for the winter. Either because politically it’s a safer place to retire,” she said, or because they want to avoid currency fluctuations or unexpected medical costs.
Prices on the Peninsula are higher than the regional benchmark, but still a discount compared with the city proper at about $1.2-million. And not everyone shopping for homes in the area is a retiree.
“I would say this is a step-up home, perfect for a young family who’s coming from a townhouse or a condo/strata property,” Ms. Stockus said, thanks to its five bedrooms and three bathrooms. It’s also only three blocks to the waterfront.
2410 Carpenter Rd., Sooke, B.C.
Asking price: $1,125,000
If you’re looking for something a little wilder and more connected to nature, consider travelling about 45 minutes west along the south coast from Victoria to Sooke, B.C., (population: 15,000).
“A lot of the people gravitating to us are not planning to do the commute,” said Marlene Arden, with Re/Max Camosun Westside, adding that the town is less of a bedroom community these days. “What they are after is hiking trails, biking trails and beaches. … They are very outdoorsy.”
Her listing is a 1950s home that was picked up and moved from its original location to a builder’s strata lot in an area on the western edge of Sooke. A brand new kitchen (and a huge butler’s pantry), updated windows and roof with a solar-panelled covered carport are just some of the upgrades added by the current owners.
Pitt Meadows, B.C., is one of the most livable cities in Canada – for those who can find it
Builder’s strata is a bit different than a pure freehold, but with fewer rules than multifamily strata corporation: There still are shared costs to maintain the roadway in, and water billing (municipal, not well) is individually metered but paid collectively.
It’s not a freehold property and is “non-view” (as in you can’t see the ocean from it), which knocks a couple hundred thousand dollars off the price compared with a similar home in the area. That’s good news for a lot of the buyers Ms. Arden’s hearing from, who are more cautious and less emotional about buying.
“People are making sure their house is sold unconditionally before they are looking for the next house,” she said. Retirees like this part of the world, but she has also been hearing from local families interested in the three-bedroom home with just over an acre of land. “They are looking at slowing their families down; get the kids outside, get them away from screens, trying to make life changes.”
What city do you want to see in the next month's edition?
Each month in The Price Point, real estate reporter Shane Dingman will take a deeper look at a region in Canada and find out what the benchmark price gets you in various cities or neighbourhoods. Let us know which region you'd like to see in the next edition and it could be featured in a special reader section.