How to Win a Bidding War in Victoria BC (2026 Update)

Multiple-offer situations are rarer in Victoria than they were in 2017, but they have not gone away, and the buyers who win them still win for the same reason: better preparation than the competition.

Between 2015 and 2017, bidding wars went from unusual to routine. Before 2014, a sale more than $25,000 over asking was almost unheard of in Victoria. By 2017, sales $100,000 or more over asking were common, and a few closed $200,000 to $400,000 over.

Today's market is calmer, but a well-located home priced to draw attention, with offers held to a set date, can still attract five or ten offers. The rules have also changed since 2017, so a strategy that worked then can get you into trouble now. This guide covers how to approach these competitions, what has changed, and the mistakes that cost buyers the home.

Your agent decides more bidding wars than your budget does

The buyer with the most money does not always win. The buyer whose agent has done the most research usually does: research on what the home is really worth, on who else is bidding, and on what the seller wants besides price.

Winning these consistently takes an agent who out-prepares every other agent at the table, not one who simply tells buyers to pay more.

Before you hire an agent for a competitive market, ask:

• How many multiple-offer situations have you represented buyers in over the last two years, and how many did you win? Ask for examples with list price, sale price and number of offers.
• How do you find out how many offers are coming, and what the seller cares about?
• How will you set the price you recommend? Ask to see the comparable sales.
• Will you be available, in person or by phone, on offer night?
• What do you do after a loss? A good agent finds out what the winning offer looked like and adjusts.

Step 1Know what the home is worth before offer night

The list price is a marketing number, not a valuation. In a multiple-offer situation it is often set below value on purpose, to bring in as many buyers as possible before a set offer date.

Your agent should build the valuation from scratch:

• Recent sales of truly comparable homes: same building or street where possible, sold in the last 30 to 90 days, adjusted for size, condition, view, parking and lot.
• The direction of the market: a home can sell for several percent more, or less, than an identical one did two months ago. Look at the trend in that price band and neighbourhood, not the region as a whole.
• How similar homes have been selling: how far over or under asking, how fast, and how many sold through an offer date.
• What the home lacks: a dated kitchen, no suite, a busy street or a strata facing big repairs all cut into what a careful buyer will pay.

The market as a whole is calmer than it was. The Victoria Real Estate Board's chair described September 2026 as moving into buyer's territory:

Greater Victoria, September 2026. Source: Victoria Real Estate Board.

Most bidding wars today come from homes priced to draw a crowd, not from a region-wide shortage. That makes valuation even more important: the question is what this home is worth, not what the market is doing.

Finish this step with two numbers written down:

Decide the second number before offer night, not during it.

Step 2Find out who you are up against

You cannot see the other offers, but you can learn a great deal about them. This is where the most diligent agents pull ahead.

The signs of serious competition:

• Showing traffic: how many showings were booked, and how many agents came back a second time with their buyers.
• Inspections: whether other buyers have booked a pre-offer inspection. A buyer who pays for an inspection before the offer date is planning a subject-free offer.
• Strata document requests: how many agents have asked for the strata package. Like an inspection, this signals a buyer doing their homework so they can offer without subjects.
• How the listing was set up: a list price below recent comparable sales, a set offer date, and a seller-supplied inspection report or strata package all tell you the seller expects several offers.

As the offer date approaches, your agent should stay in regular contact with the listing agent and ask:

• How many offers are expected, and has anyone registered an offer?
• Will the seller look at an early offer before the offer date?
• What completion and possession dates does the seller want?
• Is anything else important to the seller, such as a quick sale, a later move-out or a rent-back?
• Would the seller consider an escalation (referential) offer?

Asked well, these questions often reveal how many offers are likely, whether they are subject-free, and roughly where they sit against the asking price. What the listing agent may share is now set out by the regulator; see what the listing agent can and can't tell you, below.

Step 3Do your homework before you bid

The winning offer is usually subject-free, so the work a buyer would normally do after acceptance has to be done before the offer date. BC's regulator calls a subject-free offer one of the riskiest ways to compete (BCFSA). Doing the homework is what makes it a calculated risk rather than a gamble.

Step 4Write the offer the seller can't turn down

Treat the offer as your one chance. A seller with several offers may accept one, counter only one, reject all of them, or ask everyone to come back with new offers by a set time. They are not required to accept any offer, even one at full price (BCFSA).

Escalation (referential) offers: powerful, but ask first

An escalation offer, also called a referential offer, sets your price as a fixed amount above the best competing offer, up to a maximum you choose.

They can work well when the premium is meaningful and the seller's side has agreed in advance to consider one. As a rough guide, the premium should be at least $5,000 to $10,000 under $500,000 and $10,000 to $20,000 above that; a token amount rarely moves a seller.

If you want to try one:

1. Have your agent ask the listing agent whether the seller will consider it. If the answer is no, write a straight-price offer.
2. Set a firm cap you can afford, with the appraisal gap in mind.
3. Require a copy of the competing offer the price is based on, with personal details removed.
4. Have a lawyer review the wording before you sign.

What the listing agent can and can't tell you

The listing agent works for the seller, and BC's regulator sets out what they may share about other offers (BCFSA):

• That other offers exist, and how many: unless the seller says otherwise, the listing agent should let buyers' agents know competing offers exist.
• The terms of another buyer's offer: only with the seller's prior consent, preferably in writing, and never if the seller has agreed to keep that buyer's offer confidential. If the seller decides sharing terms will bring a better result, the agent must follow the seller's instructions.
• Every written offer goes to the seller, unless the seller has instructed in writing not to present certain types of offers.

Two things buyers often get wrong:

• A "do not disclose" clause in your offer does not protect you. The seller is not bound by anything in your offer until they accept it (BCFSA).
• The highest price does not always win. A lower offer with no subjects, a bigger deposit and the seller's dates can beat a higher one with conditions.

The skill is in what your agent asks and how. Questions about the seller's dates, priorities and how many offers to expect are fair game, and the answers shape your offer.

What has changed since 2017

Several rule changes since 2017 affect how you should bid.

More may be coming. In November 2025, BCFSA consulted on proposals that include additional disclosures in multiple-offer situations, protections for buyers who make unconditional offers, and requiring listing agents to obtain strata documents when they list (BCFSA). As of BCFSA's June 2026 update on its priorities, no rule changes had been announced.

Mistakes that lose bidding wars

• Offering without a valuation. Paying "whatever it takes" without knowing what the home is worth means either overpaying or bidding too timidly.
• Going subject-free without the homework. No financing review, no inspection and unread strata minutes turn a strategy into a gamble.
• Forgetting the appraisal gap. If you cannot cover a shortfall in cash, your real ceiling is lower than your approval.
• Letting emotion set the price. Decide your walk-away number before offer night and keep to it.
• Sloppy paperwork or a missed deadline. A missing initial or a late offer can lose a home you would otherwise have won.
• Writing an escalation offer the seller won't consider. Ask first.
• Not learning from a loss. Once a sale is complete, your agent can see what it sold for. Find out what the winning offer had that yours didn't.

When to walk away

Walk away when the price needed to win is above your number, when you could not finish your homework in time, or when the homework turns up a problem: a large special levy coming, a lawsuit against the strata, or an inspection finding you cannot price. Another home will come along, and in today's market, often sooner than buyers expect. Watch the just listed page for new arrivals, and the price drops page for homes where the seller has already come down and the competition is usually thinner.