Downtown

At a glance

The city's dense high-rise core, with almost everything in apartment towers. It includes Yaletown, Coal Harbour, Gastown and the Central Business District, and it has the most residents of any area. About 61% of households rent and 98% of homes are apartments. The median assessed value is $748K across all residential property, or $740K for strata (condo and townhouse) units. Police data shows crime well above the city median per resident.

Median assessed home

$748K

2026 assessment · city $1.42M

Residents

72,410

estimate for mid-2025, up from 69,705 at the 2021 census

Households renting

61%

city 54%

Permits per year

693

2021–2025 average

What the numbers mean

• The median assessed home is $748K, 47% below the Vancouver median of $1.42M.
• 61% of households rent, above the 54% city-wide, so expect a younger, more mobile mix of neighbours.
• Only 7% of residents are under 15, versus 11% city-wide.
• 28% of residents are 25 to 34. It skews young-professional.
• 98% of homes are apartments (62% city-wide), so a condo is the usual way in. The median condo or townhouse is assessed at $740K.
• Building activity is in line with the city as a whole, at about 693 permits a year.

Who lives here

Share of residents by age, estimate for mid-2025, up from 69,705 at the 2021 census.

Homes

Share of homes by type, estimate for mid-2025, up from 69,705 at the 2021 census.

Daily errands on foot¹

Places within the neighbourhood or a 5-minute walk of its edge, compared with the typical neighbourhood in Vancouver.

Supermarkets

25

city median 9

Cafés and bakeries

280

city median 37

Pharmacies and clinics

72

city median 16

Playgrounds and dog parks

50

city median 38

Estimated property tax²

What owning here costs each year in property tax at the median assessed value. Renters don’t pay it directly, but landlords pass it on.

Median home

$2,520 a year

about $210 a month on a $748K assessment

Upfront closing costs³

BC charges a tiered property transfer tax: 1% on the first $200,000, 2% to $2 million, then 3%, and 5% above $3 million. Government fees at the median home price:

BC property transfer tax

$12,960

on $748K

Typical apartment rent nearby⁴

Downtown sits in CMHC's Downtown survey zone. October 2025 average rent of purpose-built rental apartments in that zone:

Studio

$1,839

+$172 vs metro average

1 bedroom

$2,112

+$305 vs metro average

2 bedroom

$3,258

+$894 vs metro average

3 bedroom or more

$5,081

+$2,261 vs metro average

How it's changing

Building permits issued each year, a leading signal of new homes and renovations.

*2026 is year to date.

Safety⁵

Reported incidents in the last 12 months (October 2025 to September 2026), per 1,000 residents, compared with the median of 22 Vancouver neighbourhoods.

Reported crime

46.0

per 1,000 · above the 10.9 median

Violent crime

13.7

per 1,000 · median 1.9

Property crime

32.2

per 1,000 · median 8.8

• Reported crime runs about 4.2× the median Vancouver neighbourhood: 46.0 incidents per 1,000 residents a year, versus 10.9.
• The most common reported crime is theft from vehicles, 56% of the total. 70% of incidents are property crime.
• Crime has fallen since 2020: 3,407 reported incidents in 2025 versus 5,327 in 2020.
• So far in 2026 (January to September) there have been 2,392 incidents, 8% fewer than the same months of 2025.
• Busy main streets, transit and nightlife bring in visitors, and incidents are counted where they happen, not where people live.

Reported crime by year

*2026 is year to date.