Buying · Multiple offers
The most telling figure of the summer. It changes what a buyer can reasonably offer.
The figure
QPAREB, release of 4 September 2026 on the Quebec City CMA: transactions closing in an overbidding situation account for "17 % du total des transactions en août par rapport à la moitié au printemps", that is 17% of all transactions in August against half in the spring.
From one sale in two to one sale in six, in a matter of months.
What it changes for a buyer
For three years the rational reflex was to offer above asking just to have a chance. That reflex now costs money in most cases, because in more than eight transactions out of ten there is nobody else to beat.
It does not mean competition has disappeared. It means competition has become the exception, and should be verified rather than assumed.
Questions to ask before drafting
- How many days has the property been listed? Past five weeks with no offer, the dynamic is rarely competitive.
- Has there been a price revision? A recent cut points to a seller adjusting, not one holding out.
- How many comparable listings are active in the same sector and bracket? That is your real negotiating power.
- Is there genuinely another offer? The listing broker has transparency obligations on this.
What comes back into offers
When pressure drops, it is not only prices that move, it is conditions. The inspection becomes standard again rather than a luxury. Timelines become negotiable. A financing condition stops being a handicap.
For many buyers, getting the inspection back is worth more than winning $5,000 on the price.
And for a seller
The same figure says the opposite: counting on overbidding to make up for an inflated asking price is betting on a scenario that has become the minority. QPAREB market analysis director Charles Brant puts it plainly: sellers' expectations have to be more moderate now that overheating is less present and a correction to the asking price is more frequent.
One note on these figures
These percentages come from the QPAREB release covering the Quebec City CMA. The equivalent release on the Montreal CMA does not publish an overbidding statistic for the same month. The underlying trend is shared: supply is climbing and buyers are regaining negotiating power everywhere.
What these figures do not say
A regional statistic describes a market, not a property. Two houses on the same street, at the same price, can meet opposite fates depending on their condition, their preparation and the competition active at the exact moment of listing.
That is why we never set a price from an average. We start from comparable closed sales over the past three months, look at what is competing today, and adjust for real differences. The statistic is background, not method.
Three habits in the current market
- Price to be found, not to keep room. Buyers search by bracket, and built-in room drops you out of their search.
- Set a revision date in advance. Deciding at week five, before listing, avoids deciding emotionally at week twelve.
- Prepare the file before the showings. Documents, certificate of location, invoices for work done. What answers fast converts better.
Related
Frequently asked
What share of sales involves overbidding?
In the Quebec City CMA, 17% of transactions in August 2026, against half in the spring.
Should I still offer above asking?
In most cases there is no other offer to beat. Competition should be verified rather than assumed.
Does this figure apply to Montreal?
It comes from the Quebec City CMA release. The QPAREB does not publish the same statistic for the Montreal CMA that month.
Sources: Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers (QPAREB) releases of 4 September 2026 covering the Montreal CMA and the Quebec City CMA, August 2026 data. The price-revision and overbidding statistics come from the Quebec City CMA release; the Montreal CMA release does not publish those measures for the same month. Figures consulted 13 September 2026.
Published by the Loaa & Manseur team, number one team at RE/MAX Platine in 2024 and 2025. Tell us about your project.