Trends might indicate that the national market has “largely digested” B-20 and other policy changes
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Home sales activity in Toronto and Montreal made up for somewhat lacklustre B.C. numbers last month, according to the latest report by the Canadian Real Estate Association.
On a month-over-month basis, nationwide housing sales grew by 3.6% in April.
Overall residential sales volume posted its first annual increase (at 4.2%) since December 2017. During the same time last year, activity plummeted to a seven-year low for the month.
“Canadian housing activity appears to be broadly stabilizing, as there are signs that the market has largely digested the many policy changes,” Bank of Montreal chief economist Doug Porter wrote in a report, as quoted by The Canadian Press.
“And while the regional divide is wide, fundamentals look to be a bit more supportive in the year ahead, with the policy tightening likely having run its course, job growth surprisingly solid and borrowing costs ebbing.”
As for supply, the CREA figures indicated that the number of newly listed homes went up by 2.7% last month, on the heels of 3.4% growth in March. The Canadian sales-to-new listings ratio stood at 54.8%, from the 54.3% in March.
The average sale price ticked up by 0.3% annually to reach $494,978. Pressure from the two most expensive markets nationwide cannot be understated, however, as the average price in April with Toronto and Vancouver excluded was just a little over $391,000.
