January Home Sales Rise as Markets Tighten but Prices Still Softening: CREA
The comments below are an edited and abridged synopsis of an article by Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press
Home sales rose in January to mark a second month of rising activity and softening prices, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.
January sales were up 3.7% from a month earlier after seasonal adjustments, and up 22% from a year ago when sales were particularly soft.
The increase added to the 8.7% seasonally adjusted jump in December activity from a month earlier.
The rise in sales is helping tighten market conditions, though areas with the highest sales gains are still seeing prices trend lower, said CREA senior economist Shaun Cathcart.
The jump in January sales from a year ago reflects how weak the market was in early 2023, when it had the worst start to almost any year in the past two decades. Sales last month were still about 9% below the 10-year average.
Sales gains in January from a month earlier were most notable in Ontario, which saw a seasonally adjusted 6.9% gain, and B.C., where sales rose 4.5%.
The aggregate benchmark price, which aims to represent price changes of a typical home, was up 0.6% from a year earlier to $717,800.
However, the benchmark price fell 1.2% month-over-month.
Rising sales outpaced the number of newly listed properties, up 1.5% month-over-month, to create a more balanced market.
Rishi Sondhi of TD Bank said average home price growth is expected to continue in tighter markets, but that severe affordability deteriorations in some markets should limit runaway price growth.
BMO economist Robert Kavcic said that sales are generally weak in the winter months, so it won’t be until spring housing numbers come in that there will be a clear picture on the trend.