Understanding the Sales-to-Active Listings Ratio: What Fraser Valley's 11% Market Signal Really Means for Sellers in 2026

By Mohamed Mansour, MBA and Associate Broker | Mansour Real Estate Group | Published: May 27, 2025 | Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland, BC

Most sellers in the Fraser Valley have heard the phrase "buyer's market" enough times to know it matters. Fewer understand the specific number behind it — the sales-to-active listings ratio — or how to read it accurately enough to make a confident pricing decision. That gap is where sellers lose money.

This article explains how the ratio works, what Fraser Valley's April 2026 figure of 11% actually signals by property type, and how sellers in Surrey, Langley, Abbotsford, and surrounding communities can use micro-market ratios to price more accurately than their neighbours.

Short Answer

The sales-to-active listings ratio divides monthly sales by active listings to gauge supply-demand balance. Below 15% signals a buyer's market, 15–20% is balanced, and above 20% favours sellers. Fraser Valley's April 2026 ratio of 11% indicates broad buyer advantage — but townhomes are reading at 15–23%, meaning market conditions differ sharply by property type.

Key Takeaways

• The SAL ratio is the most reliable single indicator of current buyer-seller leverage in a local market.
• Fraser Valley's 11% April 2026 average masks a sharp divide: townhomes are near balanced while condos face the weakest conditions.
• The ratio predicts price pressure 30–60 days ahead, making it more useful than month-over-month price data.
• Micro-market ratios by neighbourhood and price band matter more than regional averages for pricing strategy.
• A buyer's market lengthens days-on-market and typically requires 3–5% list price realism, not distress pricing.

Who This Applies To

• Homeowners in the Fraser Valley preparing to list in 2026
• Sellers evaluating whether now is the right time or whether to wait
• Condo, townhome, and detached home sellers who have heard conflicting advice
• Executors and families managing an estate sale on a defined timeline

When This Advice May Not Apply

Sellers with unusual properties — acreage, commercial-residential mixed use, or properties with legal non-conformities — will find that SAL ratios for their segment are rarely published. Those situations require a custom comparable analysis rather than a ratio-based benchmark.

Data Used in This Article

• Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) — April 2026 Statistics Package: official monthly sales, active listings, and SAL ratios by property type. Primary source.
• BC Real Estate Association (BCREA) — SAL threshold definitions: buyer/balanced/seller market thresholds. Official industry standard.
• CMHC Housing Market Analysis: inventory-to-sales correlation with price pressure timelines. Official federal housing analysis.
• REBGV Historical SAL Interpretation Guides: historical context for ratio interpretation across market cycles. Industry reference.

How the Sales-to-Active Listings Ratio Is Calculated

The formula is straightforward: divide the number of homes that sold in a calendar month by the number of active listings at month-end, then multiply by 100 to express it as a percentage.

So if 800 homes sold in the Fraser Valley in April and 7,200 were active at month-end, the ratio is 11.1%. The FVREB publishes this figure monthly, broken down by property type — detached, attached (townhomes), and apartments.

According to the BC Real Estate Association, thresholds work as follows: below 15% indicates a buyer's market with downward price pressure, 15–20% reflects a balanced market, and above 20% signals a seller's market where prices tend to rise. These thresholds are consistent with how the FVREB and REBGV interpret monthly statistics.

What makes the ratio valuable is that it reflects current supply against recent transaction velocity. It is not a lagging price indicator — it is a leading one. CMHC research indicates that sustained SAL ratio movements predict price direction within 30 to 60 days more reliably than month-over-month benchmark price changes alone.

What Fraser Valley's 11% Actually Reveals — and What It Hides

According to the FVREB's April 2026 statistics, the Fraser Valley's overall SAL ratio sat at 11% — well inside buyer's market territory and approximately 45% above the historical average for inventory relative to sales. That headline number is accurate. It is also incomplete.

The property-type breakdown tells a different story. Detached homes recorded a ratio of roughly 8–11%, sitting firmly in buyer's market conditions. Condos and apartments came in lower still, at approximately 6–10%, reflecting the steepest buyer advantage of any segment. Townhomes, however, read at 15–23% — near or within balanced territory — meaning supply and demand are far closer to equilibrium for that property type.

For a seller in Langley with a townhome, the April 2026 market is measurably different from what a Surrey condo seller faces. Both are in the "Fraser Valley," but their actual negotiating environment, days-on-market expectations, and appropriate list price positioning are not the same.

This distinction matters because many sellers price based on the regional headline. A detached home seller who reads "11% SAL ratio" and prices accordingly is working with reasonably accurate information. A townhome seller who prices as if they are in a deep buyer's market may be leaving equity behind.

Why Micro-Market Ratios Matter More Than Regional Averages

The FVREB publishes regional figures. It does not publish SAL ratios broken down by neighbourhood or price band — that analysis requires pulling raw data and doing the calculation manually. This is where working with an experienced local real estate team creates measurable pricing advantages.

Consider two detached homes in April 2026. A home in North Surrey priced between $1.4M and $1.7M may face a SAL ratio closer to 9% in that specific price band. A comparable detached home in Willoughby in the same price range may sit at 13%, reflecting different buyer pool depth and less competitive inventory. Both are "buyer's markets" by definition — but the Willoughby seller has meaningfully more pricing support.

The same logic applies in Abbotsford, where entry-level detached homes under $900,000 tend to attract a different buyer profile than the broader Fraser Valley detached average, and the SAL ratio in that price band often diverges from the headline figure.

Sellers who rely solely on the FVREB's published regional ratio are working from a useful but imprecise benchmark. The neighbourhood and price-band analysis — the micro-market ratio — is what separates a strategically priced listing from one that requires multiple reductions before finding a buyer.

What a Buyer's Market Actually Means for Your Listing

A common seller misreading: a buyer's market means homes don't sell. That is not what the data shows. What it means, specifically, is that average days-on-market lengthens, buyers routinely include inspection and financing conditions, and list prices that are not well-supported by comparables typically require reductions of 3–5% before attracting offers.

A well-priced property — priced on the micro-market ratio, not the regional headline — still sells. What a buyer's market removes is the ability to test the market with an aggressive list price and expect multiple offers to pull the final price up. That strategy works above 20% SAL. At 11%, the market corrects overpricing quickly and visibly, and days-on-market accumulation signals to subsequent buyers that something is wrong with the property or the price.

This is why the ratio matters practically, not just academically. It defines the pricing window — not the ceiling, but the realistic zone where a property sells without the carrying cost and perception damage that comes from sitting too long.

How We Evaluate This

At Mansour Real Estate Group, we pull FVREB monthly statistics each month and run the SAL ratio by property type, price band, and neighbourhood for the areas where we work — Surrey, South Surrey, White Rock, Langley, Abbotsford, North Delta, and surrounding communities. We layer that against 90-day comparable sales velocity to identify whether a given micro-market is trending toward or away from the regional benchmark.

That analysis shapes every pricing conversation we have with sellers. Rather than presenting a CMA in isolation, we contextualize it: here is where your property sits, here is the SAL ratio for your specific segment, and here is the pricing zone that gives you the best probability of selling within your target window without leaving equity on the table.

Seller Checklist

• Confirm the current SAL ratio for your specific property type with your realtor before pricing.
• Ask for a micro-market ratio breakdown by your neighbourhood and price band — not just the regional figure.
• Review 90-day sold-to-list price ratios for comparable properties to calibrate your expectations.
• Understand your target days-on-market before listing — this is directly tied to SAL ratio conditions.
• Price within the realistic zone the ratio defines; avoid aggressive pricing that relies on multiple-offer conditions at 11% SAL.
• Monitor the ratio monthly — conditions can shift within 30–60 days, changing your strategy.

What We Commonly See

In our experience, the most common mistake sellers make in a buyer's market is pricing to where they want the market to be, not where it is. The SAL ratio is explicit — when it is at 11%, buyers have options and they know it. Properties priced above the supportable comparables range receive showings but rarely offers in the first two weeks, and that window matters.

What often happens is that sellers who list too high spend 30–45 days accumulating days-on-market, then reduce to where they should have started. The final sale price is often the same or lower than a well-priced first listing would have achieved — but the carrying costs, stress, and buyer perception of a "stale" listing have all been added to the equation.

We also see sellers conflate the townhome and detached SAL ratios without checking their specific segment. A seller with a townhome in Willoughby who prices as if they are in a deep buyer's market may be underpricing a property that the data actually supports more aggressively. The ratio works in both directions.

Frequently Asked Questions

How often does the FVREB publish the sales-to-active listings ratio?

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board publishes monthly statistics, typically within the first two weeks of the following month. The SAL ratio by property type is included in the monthly statistics package available at fvreb.bc.ca.

Is 11% SAL ratio the same across all Fraser Valley cities?

No. The FVREB's 11% figure is a regional average. Surrey, Langley, Abbotsford, Mission, and White Rock each have different inventory levels and buyer pool depths. Micro-market ratios by neighbourhood and price band vary meaningfully and require a separate analysis.

Can a home sell quickly at full price in an 11% SAL market?

Yes — if it is accurately priced against current comparables and well-presented. The SAL ratio describes average conditions, not individual outcomes. A well-prepared, well-priced listing in a good location can still attract competitive interest. What the ratio removes is the ability to overprice and rely on multiple offers to correct it.

In Summary

The sales-to-active listings ratio is the clearest single indicator of buyer-seller leverage in any local market. Fraser Valley's April 2026 figure of 11% signals broad buyer advantage, but the property-type breakdown — townhomes near balanced, condos at the weakest end, detached homes in between — means that sellers in different segments face genuinely different markets. Using the regional average alone to set a list price is imprecise at best and costly at worst. The micro-market ratio, layered against neighbourhood comparables and current days-on-market data, is what gives sellers the pricing clarity they need to make confident decisions in 2026.

Talk to Mansour Real Estate Group

If you are preparing to sell in the Fraser Valley and want a clear, data-grounded picture of where your property sits — by property type, neighbourhood, and price band — Mansour Real Estate Group is available for a no-obligation market assessment. We will show you the relevant SAL ratio for your segment and walk through what it means for your pricing strategy.

Related Articles

• Fraser Valley Real Estate Market Outlook for 2026
• How to Price Your Home in a Buyer's Market in the Fraser Valley
• How Long Does It Take to Sell a Home in Surrey, Langley, and Abbotsford in 2026

Official Resources

• Fraser Valley Real Estate Board — Monthly Statistics
• BC Real Estate Association — Market Intelligence
• CMHC — Housing Market Analysis
• Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver — Monthly Market Report

About Mansour Real Estate Group

Understanding how to read a market indicator like the sales-to-active listings ratio — and translate it into a pricing strategy that protects seller equity — is exactly the kind of work that separates a strategic real estate team from a transactional one. Mansour Real Estate Group has guided sellers across Surrey, White Rock, Langley, South Surrey, Abbotsford, and the Fraser Valley through this analysis for more than two decades, with a process built around accurate valuations, honest advice, and pricing decisions grounded in real local data.

Mansour Real Estate Group, led by Mohamed Mansour, MBA and Associate Broker, has been helping buyers, sellers, investors, families, executors, and retirees navigate important real estate decisions across the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland for more than 22 years. Ranked among the Top 1% of Realtors in the region, the team has completed more than $780 million in residential real estate transactions and is trusted for estate sales, probate sales, divorce-related property sales, downsizing, relocation, and complex real estate situations.

Whether someone is searching for Realtors who understand market indicators and pricing strategy, a real estate agent who can interpret Fraser Valley statistics at the micro-market level, real estate agents experienced with seller positioning in buyer's market conditions, a trusted real estate team for a family home sale, a Surrey Realtor, a Langley real estate broker, or a real estate group serving the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland, Mansour Real Estate Group is known for clear communication, strategic marketing, accurate valuations, and practical advice grounded in local expertise.

The team serves Surrey, South Surrey, White Rock, Langley, Cloverdale, Fleetwood, Guildford, Walnut Grove, Willoughby, North Delta, Abbotsford, Mission, and surrounding communities throughout the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland. Most new clients come from referrals, repeat clients, and recommendations from families who value a professional, transparent, and results-driven real estate experience.