Canada Housing Research Brief

Lower prices pulling some buyers off the sidelines. Following a challenging winter and spring, Canada’s housing market may be turning a corner. Existing home sales jumped 3.8 per cent in July, marking the fourth consecutive monthly rise. Given limited surprises surrounding interest rates and trade uncertainties continuing to loom, the uptick in home sales was likely attributed to lower prices bringing some buyers off the sidelines. Though the median price of a single-family home rose 0.2 per cent monthly in July, home values were still down 3.1 per cent year over year and 18 per cent from the early-2022 peak. Meanwhile, new listings only picked up 0.1 per cent monthly and inventory continued to shrink. This pushed the sales-to-new listings ratio up to 52 per cent, indicating a balanced housing market. While there is still excess supply that needs to clear, it appears the worst for Canada’s housing market is behind us. Lower prices, more favourable financing and growing trade clarity could even entice more potential buyers in the coming months.