09/11/2026
Homes sold faster in both zones than they did last August. Fewer of them sold. Those two facts belong together, and reading them separately is how people get the wrong idea about where this market is headed.
Comox Valley
Detached homes sold in 43 days last month. The same month a year ago took 53. That's the clearest movement in either zone, and it happened while sales volume fell rather than rose: 42 detached homes sold against 48 last August, with new listings down too, 68 against 71.
Thin on both sides is a different market than weak. The buyers who are active are deciding quickly, and sellers are getting close to ask: detached homes closed at 97.7% of list price, townhouses at 98.4%.
Townhouses were the standout segment. Nineteen sold against only 16 new listings, with the average price up 12% to $660,858. That's genuine supply pressure in one specific segment. Condos look soft on the surface (16 sales against 22, average price down 14% to $358,894), but more condos sold in August than were newly listed, and active condo inventory has fallen from 84 units to 69 year over year. That's a segment working through its supply, not accumulating it.
One number worth reading carefully: the detached average of $885,157 is a single month on 42 sales. The rolling 12-month average sits at $919,604 and has climbed steadily since March. The monthly figure isn't a decline in values. It's a smaller sample.
Campbell River
Detached homes sold in 33 days, down from 46, a 28% improvement and the fastest of any segment in either zone.
The supply picture here is the opposite of the Valley. New listings rose 18% year over year, 60 against 51, while sales fell 9%. Only half the homes listed in August sold. There's more room to negotiate in Campbell River than there has been in some time.
The detached average came in at $730,400, down 5%. On 30 sales, a monthly average moves on whatever happened to sell that month. The rolling 12-month figure is up 2.4% to $764,814. Read the trend, not the month. Townhouses are the one segment slowing down, at 81 days against 57 last year, but that's only six sales, a signal to watch, not a trend to act on.
What This Means for You
If you are selling, both zones moved homes faster than last August, and sale prices landed within two to three percent of asking. This market rewards realistic pricing rather than punishing it. What it does not reward is a high number and a wait.
If you are buying, Campbell River gives you more choice and more negotiating room than it has in a while. Comox Valley townhouses give you almost none. Where you look matters more this month than it did in the spring.
And whichever side you are on, get pre-approved. The five-year Government of Canada bond yield climbed roughly a quarter of a point over the past month, and lenders raised fixed rates through the end of August in response. Five-year fixed products now sit about 0.10% to 0.20% above where they started the year.
A pre-approval holds a rate for you, typically 90 to 120 days depending on the lender. If rates keep climbing, you keep the one you locked. If they fall, you get the lower rate instead. There is no version of this where holding a rate costs you something.
I am not a mortgage professional and I do not give rate advice. If you do not have a broker, I am happy to introduce you to one.
Market data sourced from Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB), August 2026. Rate information current as of September 9, 2026 and subject to change. Rate hold periods and terms vary by lender. For general interest only. No guarantees apply. Not intended to solicit properties already listed for sale.
Want the Numbers for Your Specific Street?
Zone-wide averages only tell you so much. If you're weighing a move in the next few months, I'll walk you through what's actually happening on your street or in your building, and what it means for your timing.
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