Yukon’s Residential and Rental Market in 2024: Rising Prices and Low Vacancies

As of the latest data, Yukon’s real estate market continued to show dynamic activity across residential sales and the rental sector, with rising property values, changing sales volumes, and evolving rental trends across the territory, particularly in Whitehorse.

Residential Housing Market

In the third quarter of 2024, Yukon recorded a total real estate transaction value of $131.4 million, a slight increase of $322,800, or 0.2%, compared to the same quarter in 2023. This includes $103.6 million in transactions within Whitehorse and $27.8 million in the rest of Yukon. 

Whitehorse Trends

Price

In the third quarter of 2024, the average price of single-detached homes in Whitehorse was $684,500, representing a 3.0% increase from the previous year. Semi-detached homes averaged $567,600, an increase of 3.2% year-over-year, while row houses rose to $492,900, reflecting a 7.4% rise in prices.

Condominiums, a key component of Whitehorse’s housing market, experienced significant price growth, with the average sale price reaching $457,400, an increase of 7.2% compared to the third quarter of 2023. Mobile homes averaged $395,000. 

Sales

Residential real estate transactions for detached homes showed an increase in the number of sales: 95 homes were sold in Q3 2024 compared to 80 in the same quarter of 2023. However, the volume of sales for other property types, such as row houses and semi-detached homes, saw a slight decrease compared to the prior year.

Rental Market

Rental housing in Yukon has become increasingly expensive over the past decade. In April 2024, the median rent for all rental units in Yukon was $1,420, representing a year-over-year increase of $60. The highest median rent was recorded for condominiums at $2,150, followed by single detached houses at $2,030. Apartment buildings, which account for the largest share of Yukon’s rental stock, had the lowest median rent at $1,262.

The vacancy rate across Yukon remained low, at 1.8% in April 2024, up slightly from 1.0% in April 2023. Duplexes and row houses had the lowest vacancy rates, at 1.3% and 1.4% respectively, while single-detached houses showed the highest vacancy rate at 4.8%.

Whitehorse Trends

Rental Price

Whitehorse’s rental market mirrors the broader territorial trends, with rents steadily increasing across all unit types. The median rent for all rental units in Whitehorse was $1,440 in April 2024, up from $1,380 in October 2023 and $1,234 in April 2023. 

Over the past decade, rent increases have been notable.

Bachelor Units: The average rent increased from $704 in April 2014 to $1,179 in April 2024.
One-Bedroom Units: Average rents rose from $885 to $1,226 during the same period.
Two-Bedroom Units: Rents climbed from $984 to $1,488 over ten years.
Three-Bedroom or Larger Units: The largest increases were seen here, with average rents growing from $1,335 to $2,154.

Vacancy Rates

The vacancy rate for rental properties in Whitehorse has remained consistently low, reflecting high demand and limited availability. As of April 2024, the vacancy rate for units in buildings with three or more rental units was 1.5%, up from 1.0% in April 2023. Across all rental units in Whitehorse, the vacancy rate was slightly higher, but still low, at 1.8%.

Rental Housing Composition

Whitehorse offers a mix of rental property types, with apartment buildings making up the largest share. As of April 2024:

Apartment buildings represented 865 units, with a median rent of $1,262 and a vacancy rate of 1.0%.
Condominiums, composed of 254 units, had a median rent of $2,150 and a vacancy rate of 1.6%.
Single-detached houses included 189 units, with a median rent of $2,030 and the highest vacancy rate at 4.8%.
Row houses and duplexes accounted for 71 and 621 units, with median rents of $1,870 and $1,614 respectively, and vacancy rates below 1.5%.

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