the North American nation saw significant declines, particularly in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island. In Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia, sales were only slightly lower, while other provinces and territories reported a slight increase last month.
Data released on Monday (17 August) also found that although prices bordered on record levels, there was a sharp decline in the number of people who were looking to sell their homes. Accordingly, new listings in July dropped by 8 per cent, causing the national average home price to increase by 0.3 per cent to around $669,200 (US$532,600). As a result, the rations of sales to new listings rose to 74 per cent from 70 per cent in June.
In March 2021, home sales and prices escalated to record heights, on account of historically low interest rates during the COVID-19 pandemic, together with heftier personal savings amid the global health crisis. However, over the past few months, the market has been encountering a slowdown, leaving prospective buyers contend with one of the developed world’s most severe housing shortages.
Nevertheless, some experts are of the view that while the market is currently cooling down, it is not on track to go ice cold any time soon. “Despite the likelihood of further sales declines, prices should trend higher in coming quarters as markets still remain incredibly tight,” TD Bank economist Rishi Sondhi wrote in a report. “However, the rate of growth should be much slower compared to earlier in the pandemic, weighed down by tough affordability in several markets and compositional forces (i.e. a rising share of lower-priced units in overall sales).”
