NEWS

The average home prices across Canada fell again in May and home sales were down in the majority of all Canadian markets.

The average Canadian home price dropped to $711,316 in May according to data released by the Canadian Real Estate Association [CREA]. These results have produced a decrease of 4.6% month-over-month and 13% from this past February, though prices still remain about 3.4% above the average of this time last year. The biggest hits to pricing are in the Greater Toronto Area (-6.8%), Greater Vancouver (-8.3%) and BC has an overall decrease of 13.5% month-over-month.

Alberta continues to buck the trend with a province wide increase of 2.4% and its two major cities showing vastly different analytics with Calgary up 4.0% and Edmonton 10.3%

Despite the decline in the average national price, TD Bank’s Rishi Sondhi says it’s important to remember that “there’s a regional story playing out underneath the national headline.”

For example, Sondhi notes sales and prices are down disproportionately in Ontario and B.C. markets, which felt the brunt of affordability challenges during the pandemic.

Meanwhile, rent prices continue to climb as they show another average 3.7% increase. The average rents are now almost 13% above those recorded last April during the pandemic.

According to data from Rentals.ca, the average rent is $1,888 per month which is up 10.5% tear-over-year. Rental demand is up as more and more would-be buyers stray from buying a home now due to climbing interest rates and expensive properties.

Source: Canadian Mortgage Trends, CREA & Rentals.ca