Home sales in July saw the biggest year-over-year increase in more than two years, but were little changed from June, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) said Tuesday.
Actual sales increased 8.7% from the previous July to 41,186.
Seasonally adjusted sales were 40,028, down 0.7% from June. Sales rose in July in more than half of all local markets, but a decline in the Greater Toronto Area, a generally buoyant housing market, tipped the national figure toward “slightly negative,” the agency said. ICA.
The association has seen signs of stabilization in the national housing market since May, as potential buyers acclimatize to an environment of higher interest rates than many had expected.
“July continued the same trend seen in recent months, with sales stabilizing and new listings returning to a more normal level,” said Larry Cerqua, CREA President. , in a press release.
“Buyers are left with more choice, and the market is becoming more balanced, which in July also slowed the rate of price growth. »
The average home price was $668,754, up 6.3% from a year earlier.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the average was $690,867, down 2% from June.
Meanwhile, new registrations fell 0.2% from a year ago to 73,215 and rose 5.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis to 67,636.
Shaun Cathcart, senior economist at ACI, explained that the figures indicate that housing markets have stabilized in recent months and prices are moderating.
Sales and price growth, he said, continued to show signs of slowing in August due to the Bank of Canada’s interest rate hike in mid-July and well-rounded inflation. above its 2% target for longer than expected.
“Buyers are likely to pull back again until there is a higher level of certainty around interest rates,” Cathcart said in a press release.
But with inflation above 3% in July and the possibility of another interest rate hike, Toronto broker Cailey Heaps said buyers who have already secured mortgage approvals will want to take advantage of them before their rates rise in the future. ‘autumn.
“I expect September and October to be busy accordingly,” she wrote in an email.
Ms Heaps finds the summer months tend to be slow, but July was “surprisingly strong”.
