Home sales in Canada slipped slightly in July compared to June. The Canadian Real Estate Association is calling that a sign that the market is stabilizing.
“Following a brief surge of activity in April, housing markets have settled down in recent months, with price growth now also moderating,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s Senior Economist.
Sales growth has been easing since May, and July registered a 0.7% decline from the previous month. Year-over-year, though, July sales were a healthy 8.7% higher, with nearly 41,200 properties changing hands.
The national average price for a home also dipped in July, falling 2.0% from June. On an annualized basis the average price is now just a little less than $668,800, a 6.3% increase from a year earlier.
CREA’s preferred pricing measure, the Aggregate Composite Home Price Index (HPI), showed a 1.1% increase from June to July, but the HPI is down 1.5% compared to July of 2022.
New listings continued to grow in July, rising 5.6% compared to June. It was the fourth straight month of gains but inventories remain low. The sales-to-new listing ratio eased to 59.2%, down from 63% in June. The long-term average is 55%.
The latest figures from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation show housings starts slowed by 10% in July, compared to June, with homebuilders breaking ground on 255,000 units. Higher interest rates are blamed for the slowdown, but the pace of construction remains more than 7.0% above the 5-year, seasonally adjusted, average.
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