In real estate, is this a buyer’s market or a negotiation market?
This is not a hot market. It’s not a correction, either. It’s something in between, which I’d like to call a negotiation market, where nothing is guaranteed, and everything is up for discussion.
And in such a market, knowledge is leverage.
Buyers have the upper hand, for now. Inventory is climbing, options are widening, and urgency is low. For the first time in years, the market is giving them space to think, to compare, and most importantly, to negotiate. But that window is finite. If rates fall later in the year, demand could pick up again, narrowing that gap.
In fact, some relief has already arrived. According to the Q1 2025 Housing Affordability Monitor from the National Bank of Canada, mortgage rates have edged down, easing the burden of ownership slightly. The national MPPI, mortgage payments as a percentage of income, dropped to 55.4 per cent, its lowest level in nearly three years.
Sellers aren’t out of options, but strategy matters more than ever. This isn’t a list-it-and-leave-it market. It rewards precision: pricing to match the moment, staging that resonates, and a narrative that justifies value.
Still a market for the measured
The market performance in May does not seem like the beginning of a boom. It’s the return of discipline.
Buyers are re-entering the arena, not in droves, but with intention. They’re more cautious, more analytical, and more willing to walk away. This time, it’s not about chasing prices. It’s about making informed moves when the terms are right. The market is offering room to negotiate, and savvy buyers are taking it.
What comes next won’t be about who moves first, but who moves smartest.
Because in this new phase of Canadian real estate, it won’t be the boldest who wins. It will be the best-informed.
Daniel Foch
Daniel Foch is the Chief Real Estate Officer at Valery.ca, and Host of Canada’s #1 real estate podcast. As co-founder of The Habistat, the onboard data science platform for TRREB & Proptx, he helped the real estate industry to become more transparent, using real-time housing market data to inform decision making for key stakeholders. With over 15 years of experience in the real estate industry, Daniel has advised a broad spectrum of real estate market participants, from 3 levels of government to some of Canada’s largest developers.
Daniel is a trusted voice in the Canadian real estate market, regularly contributing to media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, CBC, Bloomberg, and The Globe and Mail. His expertise and balanced insights have earned him a dedicated audience of over 100,000 real estate investors across multiple social media platforms, where he shares primary research and market analysis.