Best Neighbourhoods in Vancouver (2026): It Depends What You're Buying
A typical detached house in Vancouver East has a benchmark price of $1,630,500. On the West Side it's $2,916,100, a gap of $1,285,600. For a typical apartment the same gap is only $127,000. That's why I don't believe in one list of "best neighbourhoods in Vancouver": the best neighbourhood for a condo buyer and the best one for a family that wants a yard are usually different places.
So instead of ranking on vibes, I've sorted the City of Vancouver by what you're actually buying. Prices by property type come from Greater Vancouver Realtors' (GVR) September 2026 benchmark (MLS® HPI), which GVR's monthly stats package reports only for Vancouver East and Vancouver West as a whole. Neighbourhood-level numbers come from EstateBlock's live listings on October 21, 2026: median asking prices of homes for sale right now, not what anything sold for. I'll repeat that caveat because it matters. Transit comes from TransLink and the Province's Broadway Subway updates. UBC and the University Endowment Lands are left out: they're not part of the City of Vancouver.
Source: Greater Vancouver Realtors, September 2026 stats package (MLS® HPI benchmark), September 2026.
East vs West, by property type
GVR reports the city as two areas, Vancouver East and Vancouver West, and the price gap between them depends almost entirely on what you're buying. Here's the September 2026 benchmark for each type, with the change over one and ten years.
| Type, area | Benchmark | 1 yr | 10 yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached, East | $1,630,500 | −7.7% | +8.8% |
| Detached, West | $2,916,100 | −8.7% | −17.0% |
| Townhouse, East | $980,400 | −7.9% | +27.9% |
| Townhouse, West | $1,298,500 | −5.5% | +22.6% |
| Apartment, East | $634,800 | −5.2% | +32.6% |
| Apartment, West | $761,800 | −5.2% | +21.8% |
Source: Greater Vancouver Realtors, September 2026 stats package (MLS® HPI benchmark). The benchmark is a typical home of that type, not any one property.
Three things jump out.
First, the West Side detached market has had a rough decade. The Vancouver West detached benchmark is −17.0% over ten years and −12.0% over five. East Side detached is +8.8% over ten years. If you own on the West Side, that's sobering; if you're buying there, it's the reason today's prices aren't 2016's.
Second, apartments are the closest thing to one citywide market. A typical East Side apartment is $127,000 cheaper than a West Side one. That's real money, but it's 17% of the West Side price, compared with 44% for detached.
Third, every row is negative over the last year, and the East Side townhouse benchmark fell −7.1% in just three months. That's the segment I'd watch most closely as a buyer this fall. More on it below.
First condo: where asking prices start
For a first-time buyer the question is simple: where can I get a reasonable apartment without a two-hour commute? Here are the Vancouver neighbourhoods with at least 35 condos for sale on EstateBlock, sorted by median asking price.
Source: EstateBlock.com live listings, snapshot October 21, 2026. Median asking prices of active listings, not sale prices. Medians mix unit sizes and building ages
Show the numbers
| Item | Median asking |
|---|---|
| Collingwood VE | $560K |
| Marpole | $609K |
| Grandview Woodland | $663K |
| Mount Pleasant VE | $677K |
| South Marine | $700K |
| Downtown VW | $748K |
| Kitsilano | $749K |
| Fairview VW | $800K |
| False Creek | $833K |
| West End VW | $899K |
| South Cambie | $960K |
| Yaletown | $998K |
| Cambie | $998K |
| Oakridge VW | $1.15M |
Of these 14 neighbourhoods (35+ condo listings), five have a median condo asking price under $700,000: Collingwood VE ($559,950, 100 listings), Marpole ($609,450), Grandview Woodland ($663,450), Mount Pleasant VE ($676,500, 134 listings) and South Marine ($699,900). For context, GVR's Vancouver East apartment benchmark is $634,800, so these asking prices sit in the same range as GVR's Vancouver East apartment benchmark.
A median price can mislead, though. A neighbourhood full of studios will look cheap next to one full of two-bedrooms. Asking price per square foot is a fairer comparison:
| Area | Listed | Ask $/sqft | Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Marine | 107 | $836 | 35 |
| Collingwood VE | 100 | $867 | 45 |
| Grandview Woodland | 42 | $955 | 29 |
| Fairview VW | 88 | $1,004 | 29 |
| West End VW | 259 | $1,007 | 40 |
| Kitsilano | 90 | $1,014 | 29 |
| Downtown VW | 363 | $1,020 | 47 |
| Mount Pleasant VE | 134 | $1,024 | 29 |
| Marpole | 84 | $1,048 | 49 |
| Yaletown | 224 | $1,099 | 42 |
| False Creek | 86 | $1,117 | 35 |
| South Cambie | 47 | $1,144 | 77 |
| Cambie | 76 | $1,182 | 48 |
| Oakridge VW | 37 | $1,186 | 43 |
Source: EstateBlock.com live listings, snapshot October 21, 2026. Median asking prices of active listings, not sale prices. "Days" is the median days on market of active listings.
South Marine is the cheapest per square foot on this list at $836, with Collingwood next at $867. Downtown and Kitsilano medians ($748,000 and $749,450) are about $72,000 above Mount Pleasant's ($676,500), but per square foot all three are nearly identical: $1,020, $1,014 and $1,024. That gap is mostly unit size.
What I'd actually do with this: decide your must-haves (bedrooms, parking, age of building), then compare $/sqft only between buildings that meet them. And read the strata documents before you fall for a price. An older building that's cheap per square foot can come with a special levy; my guide to the depreciation report shows what to look for. If you're still working out what you can carry, start with the income you need to buy in Vancouver and the mortgage affordability calculator; the mortgage stress test explains the qualifying rate the lender will use. Then read the first-time buyer guide.
Families who want a detached house
This is where the city splits hardest. Here are the neighbourhoods with at least 20 houses for sale on EstateBlock.
Source: EstateBlock.com live listings, snapshot October 21, 2026. Median asking prices of active listings, not sale prices. Lot sizes and house ages vary widely
Show the numbers
| Item | Median asking |
|---|---|
| Renfrew VE | $1.78M |
| Knight | $1.79M |
| Victoria VE | $1.87M |
| Collingwood VE | $1.90M |
| Grandview Woodland | $1.96M |
| Renfrew Heights | $1.99M |
| South Vancouver | $2.00M |
| Marpole | $2.15M |
| Main | $2.28M |
| Fraser VE | $2.39M |
| Kitsilano | $2.80M |
| Kerrisdale | $3.28M |
| Southlands | $3.59M |
| Cambie | $3.60M |
| Dunbar | $3.76M |
| Oakridge VW | $3.99M |
| South Granville | $4.05M |
| Point Grey | $4.29M |
| Quilchena | $4.38M |
| Shaughnessy | $5.68M |
Of the 20 neighbourhoods on the chart (20+ houses listed), seven East Side ones have a median house asking price under $2 million: Renfrew VE ($1,778,000), Knight ($1,785,000), Victoria, Collingwood, Grandview Woodland, Renfrew Heights and South Vancouver ($1,998,000). Together they have 434 houses for sale. On the West Side, Marpole ($2,150,000) and Kitsilano ($2,799,000) are the cheapest on the chart. Everything else west of Main, from Kerrisdale at $3,280,000 up to Shaughnessy at $5,680,000, is asking more than $3 million at the median.
Per square foot of house, the gap is smaller but still wide: Collingwood houses are asking a median $805 per square foot, Dunbar $1,246 and Point Grey $1,344. Price per square foot of house ignores the lot, so treat it as a rough guide on either side.
Time on market says something too. Median days listed for houses is 35 in Fraser and 41 in Kerrisdale, but 105 in Collingwood and 110 in Point Grey. A house sitting for three months in a neighbourhood where the median is 100+ days isn't a red flag by itself; it's normal for that pocket right now, and it usually means there's room to negotiate.
Two other things matter for families that I'm not ranking here. Schools: catchments are set by address, so check the Vancouver School Board for the exact house before you write an offer, not the neighbourhood name. And the lot: if a suite, a laneway home or a future multiplex matters to you, read what Bill 44 means for your lot. Once you've narrowed it down, the Vancouver property tax guide shows what the annual bill looks like at these prices.
Townhouse buyers: the segment with room to negotiate
Townhouses are the in-between option most families in Vancouver end up looking at, and in September they got noticeably easier to find on the East Side. GVR counted 274 new attached listings in Vancouver East in September, up from 118 in August (+132.2%), while sales went from 53 to 57. More supply, flat sales: that's the backdrop for the −7.1% three-month drop in the East Side townhouse benchmark.
| Area | Listed | Median ask | Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Marine | 29 | $899,000 | 47 |
| Downtown VW | 14 | $1,002,500 | 96 |
| Grandview Woodland | 20 | $1,099,500 | 60 |
| False Creek | 11 | $1,125,000 | 40 |
| Collingwood VE | 14 | $1,129,500 | 53 |
| Fairview VW | 29 | $1,249,000 | 39 |
| Knight | 11 | $1,280,900 | 21 |
| Mount Pleasant VE | 15 | $1,298,000 | 35 |
| South Granville | 34 | $1,419,000 | 53 |
| South Cambie | 23 | $1,495,141 | 119 |
| Marpole | 22 | $1,498,000 | 68 |
| Victoria VE | 10 | $1,498,900 | 31 |
| Yaletown | 13 | $1,499,900 | 29 |
| Kitsilano | 37 | $1,599,000 | 36 |
| Cambie | 52 | $1,599,450 | 91 |
| Oakridge VW | 20 | $1,663,950 | 95 |
| Shaughnessy | 19 | $1,690,000 | 8 |
| Kerrisdale | 18 | $2,038,400 | 126 |
Source: EstateBlock.com live listings, snapshot October 21, 2026. Median asking prices of active listings, not sale prices. "Days" is the median days on market. GVR "attached" listings include townhouses and other attached homes.
The cheapest townhouse market with real choice is South Marine: 29 listings at a median ask of $899,000. The deepest is Cambie, with 52 listings, but its median listing has been up for 91 days. South Cambie (119 days) and Oakridge (95 days) look similar. Compare that with Kitsilano, where the median is 36 days.
My read: in the Cambie corridor, where so many townhouses have been sitting for three months or more, buyers have time and leverage. I'd write offers below asking there and expect a counter rather than a bidding war. If you're comparing a resale townhouse with a presale in the same area, presale vs resale walks through the deposit, GST and timing trade-offs.
Transit commuters: SkyTrain now, Broadway in 2027
If you don't want to drive to work, the neighbourhoods near a SkyTrain station are a different list again. Vancouver already has three lines: the Expo Line through Collingwood and Grandview, the Millennium Line through Renfrew, and the Canada Line down Cambie Street to Marpole.
The big change is the Broadway Subway, the 5.7 km Millennium Line extension from VCC–Clark to Arbutus Street. The Province said on September 21, 2026 that all trackwork would be complete that week, and that the line is scheduled to open for passenger service in fall 2027. The trip from VCC–Clark to Arbutus is expected to take 11 minutes. It adds six underground stations: Great Northern Way–Emily Carr, Mount Pleasant, Broadway–City Hall, Oak–VGH, South Granville and Arbutus. Until a UBC extension is built, TransLink says the B-Line bus continues from Arbutus to campus.
| Station (line) | Nearby area | Condo ask |
|---|---|---|
| Joyce–Collingwood (Expo) | Collingwood VE | $559,950 |
| Commercial–Broadway (Expo, Millennium) | Grandview Woodland | $663,450 |
| Marine Drive (Canada) | Marpole | $609,450 |
| Olympic Village (Canada) | False Creek | $833,000 |
| Yaletown–Roundhouse (Canada) | Yaletown | $998,000 |
| Oakridge–41st Avenue (Canada) | Oakridge VW | $1,149,900 |
| Mount Pleasant (2027) (Millennium ext.) | Mount Pleasant VE | $676,500 |
| Oak–VGH (2027) (Millennium ext.) | Fairview VW | $799,950 |
| Arbutus (2027) (Millennium ext.) | Kitsilano | $749,450 |
Source: stations from TransLink and the Province (2019 station locations); prices from EstateBlock.com live listings, snapshot October 21, 2026. Median asking prices of active listings, not sale prices. Station-to-neighbourhood pairing is mine: listing areas don't follow station walksheds.
Read that table as a starting point, not a walk score. A condo in "Collingwood" can be two minutes or twenty from Joyce–Collingwood. Still, the range is striking: near the Expo and Millennium lines on the East Side, median condo asks run $559,950 to $663,450; along the Canada Line they run from $609,450 in Marpole to $1,149,900 in Oakridge.
The Broadway corridor is where I get asked the most questions. Will the subway push prices up? I don't know, and nobody can promise it. What I can see is that the Vancouver West apartment benchmark is −5.2% over the past year even with the line under construction. My read: buy near a future station because the commute works for you in 2027, not because you're betting on a jump in value. Don't pay a "subway premium" a seller can't back up with recent sales in the same building.
How fast things are selling
Price tells you what you'll pay; pace tells you how hard you'll have to compete. GVR's September numbers show sales against new listings for each side of the city.
| Segment | New | Sales | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| East detached | 222 | 65 | 29% |
| East attached | 274 | 57 | 21% |
| East apartment | 274 | 61 | 22% |
| West detached | 217 | 47 | 22% |
| West attached | 205 | 45 | 22% |
| West apartment | 714 | 214 | 30% |
Source: Greater Vancouver Realtors, September 2026 stats package, Listing & Sales Activity Summary. MLS® homes. "New" = new listings in September; "Ratio" = sales ÷ new listings, my calculation.
Roughly one home sold for every three to five that came on the market. The busiest segment relative to new supply was West Side apartments: 214 sales against 714 new listings, about 30%. East Side detached was similar at 29%. East Side attached was the slowest at 21%, which fits the townhouse picture above.
Region-wide, GVR's sales-to-active-listings ratio for September was 10.9%. GVR's own rule of thumb is that prices tend to face downward pressure when that ratio stays below 12% and upward pressure when it stays above 20%. We're below 12%, so by GVR's own yardstick this is a market where buyers have the upper hand on price. That can change once rates or confidence move.
EstateBlock's live listings show how the number of homes for sale changed over the last week:
| Type | Oct 14 | Oct 21 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,343 | 1,321 | −22 |
| Condos | 2,315 | 2,319 | +4 |
| Townhouses | 526 | 524 | −2 |
Source: EstateBlock.com live listings, snapshots October 14 and 21, 2026. Active listings and median asking prices, not sale prices.
Not much moved in a week: 22 fewer houses for sale, condo supply about flat. Median asking prices barely changed: the citywide house median went from $2,759,250 to $2,745,545, condos from $799,000 to $798,638. In a market this slow, the week-to-week number matters less than how long a specific listing has been sitting and whether it's already had a price cut.
My read, by buyer type
These are my opinions, based on the numbers above, not a ranking anyone can certify. Your commute, your kids' school and your budget should overrule any list, including mine.
- First condo, budget around $550,000 to $700,000: Collingwood, Marpole, Grandview Woodland, Mount Pleasant (the VE side) and South Marine. Mount Pleasant and South Marine have the most listings; Collingwood has the lowest median ask and sits on the Expo Line. Compare $/sqft, not medians.
- Condo, downtown lifestyle: Downtown has 363 condos listed at a $748,000 median ask; the West End and Yaletown run higher. Lots of supply means you can be picky about the building.
- Townhouse: South Marine for price, the Cambie corridor for choice and leverage. The East Side townhouse benchmark fell more over the last three months than any other segment in the East vs West table, so I'd negotiate hard.
- Detached for a family, under $2 million asking: of the neighbourhoods with 20+ houses listed, Renfrew, Knight, Victoria, Collingwood, Grandview Woodland, Renfrew Heights and South Vancouver. Check the lot and the school catchment for the exact address.
- Detached, West Side: Marpole and Kitsilano are the cheaper entry points on the chart, then Kerrisdale. The ten-year benchmark decline means you're not paying 2016 prices, but nobody can tell you where the bottom is.
- Transit commuter: anywhere on the Expo or Canada lines today; Mount Pleasant, Fairview and the east end of Kitsilano once the Broadway Subway opens. Buy for the commute, not for a guessed price bump.
Whatever you buy, budget the costs on top of the price. On a $650,000 condo or a $1.9 million house, closing costs in B.C. add up quickly. If you already own and want to know what your place is worth before you trade neighbourhoods, try the home value estimator or browse the Vancouver real estate page.
FAQ
What is the cheapest neighbourhood in Vancouver to buy a condo?
Among City of Vancouver neighbourhoods with at least 35 condos for sale on EstateBlock on October 21, 2026, Collingwood had the lowest median asking price at $559,950. South Marine had the lowest asking price per square foot ($836), with Collingwood next ($867). These are asking prices of active listings, not sale prices.
How much is a detached house on Vancouver's East Side vs the West Side?
GVR's September 2026 MLS® HPI benchmark for a detached home was $1,630,500 in Vancouver East and $2,916,100 in Vancouver West, a gap of $1,285,600.
When does the Broadway Subway open?
The Province said on September 21, 2026 that trackwork was being completed that week and that the line is scheduled to open for passenger service in fall 2027.
What are the best neighbourhoods in Vancouver for families?
It depends on budget. For a detached house under $2 million asking: of the neighbourhoods with at least 20 houses for sale on EstateBlock, the East Side neighbourhoods of Renfrew, Knight, Victoria, Collingwood, Grandview Woodland, Renfrew Heights and South Vancouver had median asks below that level on EstateBlock in October 2026. Check the school catchment for the exact address.
Sources
- Greater Vancouver Realtors: September 2026 stats package (MLS® HPI, sales and listings by area)
- EstateBlock.com: Vancouver homes for sale (live listings, snapshots Oct 14 and Oct 21, 2026)
- EstateBlock.com: Vancouver neighbourhood condo, house and townhouse pages (fetched Oct 21, 2026)
- Government of B.C.: Broadway Subway Project reaches major milestone with final track installation (Sept 21, 2026)
- TransLink: Broadway Subway Project
- Government of B.C.: Station locations finalized for future Broadway Subway project (Sept 18, 2019)
- CBC News: Broadway Subway station names unveiled
- TransLink: SkyTrain schedules and maps
- Vancouver School Board
Dan Marusin PREC, REALTOR® · Renanza Realty Inc., 777 Hornby St, Suite 600, Vancouver, BC. This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice.