Housing sales across Canada rose for the fifth consecutive month, according to statistics from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA).
Statistics from August show that home sales across the country rose 1.1 percent on a month-over-month basis.
In total, 40,257 homes were sold across Canada in August, up from 39,522 in August 2024.
August was the best month for sales since 2021, according to CREA. It was also the fifth consecutive month that saw an increase in sales activity, which has increased 12.5 percent since March.
Sales increased in Montreal, Ottawa, and Greater Vancouver, while they dipped in the Toronto area, CREA said.
More homeowners put their houses on the market in August, as listing increased 2.6 percent over July. CREA said at the end of August there were 195,453 properties listed for sale across Canada. That is an 8.8 percent increase from last year, and “right in line” with the long term average for that time of year, according to CREA.
The increase in new listings outpaced the increase in sales for August, CREA said. It added that the sales-to-new listings ratio fell to 51.2 percent from 52 percent in July, which was the first decline since March.
The average price of a home also increased slightly year-over-year, with the non-seasonally adjusted national average home price at $664,078, which represents a 1.8 percent increase from August 2024.
CREA senior economist Shaun Cathcart said the trend could “accelerate” this fall.
“Part of what drives sales at different points in the year is the availability of a lot of fresh property listings for buyers to buy,” he said, adding in the fall it usually happens at the beginning of September.
“If last year is any kind of guide, then there is the potential that sales could really pick up in the next month or so depending on how many buyers are drawn off the sidelines, particularly if we see a September rate cut by the Bank of Canada.”
The Bank of Canada is set to announce a rate decision on Sept. 17.
CREA chair Valérie Paquin said that new listings were “flooding onto the market,” noting that while momentum in home sales slowed between July and August, it was “simply a reflection of the time of year.”
CREA said there were more than four months of inventory on a national basis at the end of August, which is the lowest level since January. It said the long term average was five months of inventory.
It noted that a “seller’s market” would be anything under 3.6 months, while a “buyer’s market” would be above 6.4 months.
