Photo: Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domainElectoral Area A, Nanaimo is adding housing quickly, at 63.5 new homes a year per 1,000 (British Columbia’s towns: 18.1)
In May 2021 the median owned home was worth $685,000 by its owner’s reckoning, the average one $712,000. What owners reported in May 2021 is an opinion of value; interest rates and prices have both moved since. The median sale in 2023 was $885,000, across 120 buyers.
What Electoral Area A, Nanaimo’s homes are worth, three ways
Each source sits beside its own median for British Columbia’s towns; none compares across provinces, which value homes in their own ways.
median, owners’ estimate
- Average
- $712K
- Owners
- 2,545
- British Columbia’s towns
- $720K
- The typical Canadian town
- $406K
median sale price
- Average sale
- $970K
- ÷ buyers’ income
- 6.5×
- Buyers
- 120
- British Columbia’s towns
- $682K
all residential
- British Columbia’s towns
- $671K
Census 2021 (Statistics Canada); Canadian Housing Statistics Program, tables 46-10-0099 and 46-10-0093; Québec rôle d’évaluation foncière 2026 (MAMH).
Electoral Area A, Nanaimo’s detached houses are assessed 12% above the median of British Columbia’s towns
Assessors listed 2,535 residential properties in Electoral Area A, Nanaimo for 2024, 84% of them detached houses.
Median assessment by type, 2024 the tick is the median of British Columbia’s towns
Canadian Housing Statistics Program, table 46-10-0093 (2024): residential properties on the assessment roll, vacant land left out. The ticks are the median of British Columbia’s towns with their own figure; assessments compare within a province only.
A town of houses: 85% of the homes in Electoral Area A, Nanaimo stand alone (British Columbia’s towns: 62%)
People lived in 3,125 homes in Electoral Area A, Nanaimo at the 2021 census. Half or more were standing by 2000.
Homes by period of construction the tick is the median of British Columbia’s towns
Homes by kind
| Electoral Area A, Nanaimo | British Columbia | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Condominiums | under 1% | 10% | 8% |
| Needing major repairs | 8% | 6% | 6% |
| Too small for the household | 2% | 4% | 3% |
| Households in core housing need | 5% | 10% | 7% |
Census 2021 (Statistics Canada): occupied private dwellings; core housing need as Statistics Canada defines it. Ticks and columns are medians of the towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more.
Electoral Area A, Nanaimo’s busiest year for permits was 2018, with 265 new homes
Building permits added 1,257 homes in Electoral Area A, Nanaimo between 2018 and 2023: some 210 a year. Houses dominate the permits, at 97% in single-unit buildings (British Columbia’s towns: 27%). Figures for monthly permits are published for the Nanaimo metro area as a whole, not for Electoral Area A, Nanaimo alone.
New homes a year per 1,000 homes
Rising: 977 new homes in the 12 months to August 2026, 79% more
Statistics Canada, tables 46-10-0087 (building permits by census subdivision, 2018–2023: dwelling units created, new construction and conversions) and 34-10-0292 (monthly, metro areas). Per 1,000: units a year over 2019–2023 against occupied homes in 2021.
Electoral Area A, Nanaimo sits near the middle of British Columbia’s towns ($720,000)
The census values of British Columbia’s towns, 254 of them with 2,500+ people, from dearest to cheapest.
Census 2021, owners’ estimates; towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, no city as a whole, no reserve.
Cheaper next to Electoral Area A, Nanaimo: Electoral Area B, Nanaimo, Ladysmith and Nanaimo
Next to Electoral Area A, Nanaimo: 2021 census values and the share of owners.
| Town | Median home value | Average | Owners | km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral Area A, Nanaimo | $685K | $712K | 84% | |
| Electoral Area H, Cowichan Valley | $800K | $888K | 89% | 8.3 |
| Electoral Area B, Nanaimo | $576K | $654K | 88% | 9.5 |
| Ladysmith | $552K | $588K | 81% | 12.5 |
| Nanaimo | $600K | $626K | 67% | 13.7 |
| Electoral Area C, Nanaimo | $900K | $984K | 84% | 15.9 |
| Electoral Area G, Cowichan Valley | $700K | $790K | 84% | 17.4 |
Census 2021 values; km.
Questions about property prices in Electoral Area A, Nanaimo
How many households in Electoral Area A, Nanaimo are in core housing need?
Statistics Canada puts 5% of Electoral Area A, Nanaimo’s households in core housing need, a smaller share than the 10% of British Columbia’s towns.
What is the average house price in Electoral Area A, Nanaimo?
An average of $970,000 in 2023, with the median sale at 6.5 times the buyer’s income.
Is Electoral Area A, Nanaimo expensive for British Columbia?
Neither more nor less: British Columbia’s towns have a median of $720,000, and Electoral Area A, Nanaimo is near it.
Can I see individual sales or prices by street?
No. Canada has no open register of individual sales; Statistics Canada publishes medians and averages by town only.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021 · Statistics Canada, Canadian Housing Statistics Program · Statistics Canada, building permits (tables 46-10-0087 and 34-10-0292). Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).