Kelowna Real Estate Market Update October 2026: Inventory Rises While Sales Fall, Townhomes Hit Hardest
October 2026 (September Numbers)
If you're thinking about buying or selling in Kelowna, your first question is probably "How's the market?" Here is the short answer for September: sales are down, inventory went up when it normally comes down, and every property type is now firmly in buyer's market territory. Below is what happened by category and what it means for your next move.
Sales Activity
August was a slow month in the Okanagan. Sales dropped to roughly the same level as August 2024, which made it tied for the weakest August of the last four years. September wasn't much better. Sales stayed flat from August to September and finished down 12% year-over-year, the third weakest September in the last four years.
I don't expect October to improve. The provincial election and this month's municipal elections have people distracted, and with the cost of living as high as it is, most people aren't looking at real estate unless they have to be. The August wildfires also affected sales into September. Most buyers need a week or two of due diligence after an accepted offer, and few were making offers at the end of August or the start of September.
Here is how sales broke down by property type:
- Single family detached: 164 sales in September, down 4% from last year.
- Townhomes: 46 sales across the entire Kelowna area, down 15% from last year.
- Condos: down 19% from last year, the biggest drop of the three.
Normally, as we move into the fourth quarter, inventory starts to taper off. This year, inventory actually rose from August to September, which hasn't happened in years. Sales are falling while the number of homes on the market is climbing. Total inventory is still down 4.7% from last year, but 2024 and 2025 were both record-setting years for inventory, so that is a high bar to compare against.
Months of Supply by Property Type
Months of supply tells you how long it would take to sell the current inventory at the current sales pace if nothing new were listed. Four to six months is a balanced market. Anything above that favors buyers. Zero to three months is a seller's market, and we are a long way from that.
- Single family detached: up from 7.4 months in August to 8.3 months in September. That is firmly a buyer's market, although it is down slightly from this time last year.
- Townhomes: almost nine months of supply, up 22% from a year ago. That means roughly 11% of listings are selling in any 30-day period.
- Condos: about nine months of supply, up from last month and slightly up from last year.
Benchmark Prices by Property Type
The benchmark price gives you a general idea of what a typical property in the area sells for.
Composite benchmark: Just under $800,000, up from August and up slightly from last year. Over five years, it is still down 11% from the 2022 peak, a drop of just over $100,000.
Single family detached: The benchmark was $1,057,000 in September, essentially unchanged from August and up 3.4% from $1,022,000 last September. This is the strongest part of the Kelowna market. People want to live here, and they want single family homes. Prices aren't rising in a buyer's market, but they aren't falling much either. They climbed from March into August, with a bump in August that I think was influenced by the wildfires, then flattened in September. If prices dip in October, that would suggest months of supply is starting to push them down. Over five years, single family prices are still below the peak, but they are up about $80,000 from the January 2023 bottom.
Townhomes: The benchmark was $696,000 in September, down 0.3% from $698,000 in August and down 5.6% from about $737,000 last September. Prices have declined steadily since May, and they are now lower than they were in January 2025. Over five years, townhome prices are down 17% from the peak, falling from $838,000 to under $700,000. A townhome now costs about $40,000 less than it did five years ago.
Condos: The benchmark was $496,000 in September, up 6.7% from August and up 2% from last year. That number doesn't tell the whole story. Condo prices have been volatile for the past 10 to 12 months, with a spike in January, a drop in February, and some appreciation into April before easing back. September is not far off where prices were in July, so I'm treating August as a bit of an anomaly, possibly linked to the wildfires or a data adjustment. $500,000 seems to be a resistance point that the benchmark keeps bumping up against. Over five years, condo prices are down about 10% from the 2022 peak and up about $30,000 from five years ago.
I expect more downward pressure on condo prices. On top of the inventory on the MLS, developers are still sitting on unsold inventory that hasn't been listed, so the market is likely even more buyer-friendly than the numbers show.
What This Means for Buyers
If you're ready and able to buy, this is a good time to be at the table. Competition is low, inventory is high, and every property type has more than eight months of supply. Townhomes and condos offer the most room to negotiate, since prices in those segments have been softening. Single family detached homes are holding their value better, so expect less room on price there, but you will still have more choice and more time to decide than you would in a balanced market.
What This Means for Sellers
If you have to sell, price aggressively. In a slow market, there is no way around it: your price has to be sharp from day one. With inventory rising and fewer buyers active, an overpriced listing will sit, and the longer it sits, the more leverage buyers have. If you don't have to sell right now, it may be worth waiting to see whether the fall numbers improve, but go in with realistic expectations for pricing.
The Top Five Takeaways from September
250-469-3329
tyrell@tyrellboake.ca
- The August wildfires affected prices and sales, but prices recovered in September in the condo and single family categories.
- Sales were down 12% year-over-year and flat from August, and the wildfires' effect on sales carried into September.
- Inventory grew again, pushing months of supply deeper into buyer's market territory.
- Total inventory rose from August to September, when it normally starts to fall.
- Townhome prices have been hit hardest, declining steadily since May, and they are now lower than they were five years ago.
250-469-3329
tyrell@tyrellboake.ca