Archive for category: CREA News

Ottawa, ON, November 15, 2018 – Statistics released today by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales declined between September and October 2018.

Highlights:

• National home sales fell 1.6% from September to October.
• Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down by 3.7% from one year ago.
• The number of newly listed homes eased 1.1% from September to October.
• The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) was up 2.3% year-over-year (y-o-y) in October.
• The national average sale price slipped by 1.5% y-o-y in October.

Home sales via Canadian MLS® Systems edged back by 1.6% in October 2018. While activity is still stronger compared to the first half of 2018, it remains below monthly levels recorded from early 2014 through 2017. (Chart A)

Transactions declined in more than half of all local markets, led by Hamilton-Burlington, Montreal and Edmonton. Although activity did improve modestly in many markets, it was offset by a decline in sales elsewhere by a factor of two.

Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 3.7% compared to October 2017 and in line with the 10-year average for the month. While sales were down y-o-y in slightly more than half of all local markets in October, lower sales in Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley more than offset the rise in sales in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Montreal by a wide margin.

“This year’s new mortgage stress-test has lowered how much mortgage home buyers can qualify for across Canada, but its effect on sales has varied somewhat depending on location, housing type and price range,” said CREA President Barb Sukkau. “All real estate is local. A professional REALTOR® is your best source for information and guidance in negotiating a purchase or sale of a home during these changing times,” added Sukkau.

“National sales activity lost momentum in October,” said Gregory Klump, CREA’s Chief Economist. “In part, this reflects waning activity among some urban centers in Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe region and the absence of an offsetting rise in sales in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. Even so, the balance between sales and listings in these regions points to stable prices or modest gains. By contrast, the balance between sales and listings for housing markets in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland indicates a weak pricing environment for homeowners who are looking to sell.”

The number of newly listed homes edged down 1.1% between September and October, led by the GTA, Calgary and Victoria. The decline in new supply among these markets more than offset an increase in new supply in Edmonton and Greater Vancouver.

As for the balance between sales and listings, the national sales-to-new listings ratio in October came in at 54.2% — close to September’s reading of 54.4% and its long-term average of 53.4%.

Considering the degree and duration to which market balance readings are above or below their long-term average is the best way of gauging whether local housing market conditions favour buyers or sellers. As a rule of thumb, measures of market balance that are within one standard deviation of their long-term average are generally consistent with balanced market conditions.

Based on a comparison of the sales-to-new listings ratio with the long-term average, about two-thirds of all local markets were in balanced market territory in October 2018.

The number of months of inventory is another important measure for the balance between sales and the supply of listings. It represents how long it would take to liquidate current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.

There were 5.3 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of October 2018. While this remains in line with its long-term national average, the number of months of inventory is well above its long-term average in the Prairie provinces and in Newfoundland & Labrador. By contrast, Ontario and Prince Edward Island are the two provinces where the measure remains

more than one standard deviation below its long-term average. In other provinces, the number of months of inventory is closer to its long-term average and suggests that sales and inventory are well balanced.

The Aggregate Composite MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI) was up 2.3% y-o-y in October 2018 with similar gains posted in each of the three previous months. (Chart B)

Apartment units posted the largest y-o-y price gains in October (+7.4%), followed by townhouse/row units (+3.9%). By comparison, one-storey single-family homes posted a modest increase (+0.6%) while two-storey single-family home prices held steady.

Trends continue to vary widely among the 17 housing markets tracked by the MLS® HPI. In British Columbia, home price gains have been diminishing on a y-o-y basis (Greater Vancouver: +1%; Fraser Valley: +6.8%; Victoria +8.5%; elsewhere on Vancouver Island: +11.8%).

By contrast, MLS® HPI benchmark price comparisons are improving on a y-o-y basis among housing markets in the Greater Golden Horseshoe region that are tracked by the index. Home prices were up from year-ago levels in Guelph (+9.3%), Hamilton-Burlington (+6.8%), the Niagara Region (+6.3%), the GTA (+2.6%) and Oakville-Milton (+2.2%). While home prices in Barrie and District remain slightly below year-ago levels (-0.9%), declines there are shrinking; if current price momentum persists, home prices in December are on track to turn positive compared to December 2017.

Across the Prairies, benchmark home prices remained below year-ago levels in Calgary (-2.6%), Edmonton (-2.4%), Regina (-3.6%) and Saskatoon (-0.9%).

Home prices rose by 6.6% y-o-y in Ottawa (led by a 7.4% increase in two-storey single-family home prices), by 6.3% in Greater Montreal (led by a 9.8% increase in townhouse/row unit prices) and by 4.2% in Greater Moncton (led by a 12.4% increase in townhouse/row unit prices). (Table 1)

The MLS® HPI provides the best way to gauge price trends because average price trends are strongly distorted by changes in the mix of sales activity from one month to the next.

The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average price for homes sold in October 2018 was just under $496,800, down 1.5% from the same month last year.

The national average price is heavily skewed by sales in Greater Vancouver and the GTA, two of Canada’s most active and expensive markets. Excluding these two markets from calculations cuts almost $114,000 from the national average price, trimming it to just under $383,000.

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PLEASE NOTE: The information contained in this news release combines both major market and national sales information from MLS® Systems from the previous month.

CREA cautions that average price information can be useful in establishing trends over time, but does not indicate actual prices in centres comprised of widely divergent neighbourhoods or account for price differential between geographic areas. Statistical information contained in this report includes all housing types.

MLS® Systems are co-operative marketing systems used only by Canada’s real estate Boards to ensure maximum exposure of properties listed for sale.

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is one of Canada’s largest single-industry trade associations. CREA works on behalf of more than 125,000 REALTORS® who contribute to the economic and social well-being of communities across Canada. Together they advocate for property owners, buyers and sellers.

Further information can be found at http://crea.ca/statistics.

For more information, please contact:
Pierre Leduc, Media Relations
The Canadian Real Estate Association
Tel.: 613-237-7111 or 613-884-1460
E-mail: [email protected]

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Ottawa, ON, October 15, 2018 – 77 developers and programmers signed up for the Canadian Real Estate Association’s (CREA) first ever REALTOR.ca hackathon over the weekend at Ottawa’s Bayview Yards. This is one of the many initiatives CREA is undertaking to ensure the continuous improvement of Canada’s #1 real estate website, REALTOR.ca

. CREA is dedicated to finding new ways to help more Canadians achieve their dreams of home ownership.

“Amazing things can happen when talented and passionate people come together with a common goal” said Barb Sukkau, president of CREA.  “CREA hosted developers from across Canada and beyond over a weekend of designing, building and “demoing” solutions that were focused on facilitating the homebuying and selling journey.”

Attendees had the opportunity to participate in an intense 48-hour hackathon in which teams quickly moved from challenge to idea, to pitching a fully functional demo to a panel of real estate and technology-focused judges. This is the first of several hackathon challenges that CREA plans to host.

“At TD, we have a strong history of finding innovative solutions to support homebuyers on their journey to homeownership and we’re proud to be a part of the inaugural REALTOR.ca hackathon,” said Roy D’Souza, Associate Vice President, Real Estate Secured Lending, TD.

The winning proposal was developed by team propGram, composed of Bahar Eghtesadi, Maryam Moafi and Reza Farahani. “We had an amazing experience and we’re so grateful for the opportunity to really dive into REALTOR.ca’s data sets”, said Bahar Eghtesadi, propGram team leader. “We’re looking forward to elaborating on our idea and optimizing it.”

Left-to-right: Michael Bourque, CEO The Canadian Real Estate Association,  propGram team members: Bahar Eghtesadi, Reza Farahani, Maryam Moafi

With this Hackathon, CREA demonstrated its commitment to maintaining REALTOR.ca as consumers’ first choice when looking for a new home by constantly adding the features they demand and expect. Participans were able to meet CREA management and staff, sowing the seeds for potential future business opportunities.

“The real estate industry in Canada is evolving rapidly and technology provides even more opportunities to improve the consumer experience,” said James Mabey, Chair of CREA’s Technology Committee. “We’re excited to work with the hackathon teams to help foster innovation that can benefit our members and enhance the consumer journey on REALTOR.ca.”

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About the Canadian Real Estate Association

REALTOR.ca is owned and operated by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), one of Canada’s largest single-industry trade associations. CREA works on behalf of 125,000 REALTORS® who contribute to the economic and social well-being of communities across Canada. Together they advocate for property owners, buyers and sellers. REALTOR.ca provides trusted, up-to-date and comprehensive property advertisements for residential, commercial and rental properties across Canada. Whether you have just started looking or you are ready to make that important purchase, REALTOR.ca connects you to valuable resources and local REALTORS® to help you find your dream property.

For additional information, please contact:

Pierre Leduc
Media Relations
The Canadian Real Estate Association
Tel.: 613-237-7111 or 613-884-1460
E: [email protected]

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Ottawa, ON, September 17, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show a small increase in national home sales between July and August 2018.

Highlights:

• National home sales rose 0.9% from July to August.
• Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 3.8% from August 2017.
• The number of newly listed homes was unchanged from July to August.
• The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) was up 2.5% year-over-year (y-o-y) in August.
• The national average sale price edged up 1% y-o-y in August.

National home sales via Canadian MLS® Systems edged up by 0.9% in August 2018, marking a fourth consecutive monthly gain. However, sales activity is still running below levels in most other months going back to early 2014.

Roughly half of all local markets recorded an increase in sales from July to August, led again by the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), along with gains in Montreal and Edmonton.

Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 3.8% y-o-y in August, due mainly to declines in major urban centres in British Columbia.

“The new stress-test on mortgage applicants implemented earlier this year continues to weigh on national home sales,” said CREA President Barb Sukkau. “The degree to which the stress-test continues to sideline home buyers varies depending on location, housing type and price range. All real estate is local, and REALTORS® remain your best source for information about sales and listings where you live or might like to in the future,” said Sukkau.

“Improving national home sales activity in recent months continues to obscure significant differences in regional trends for home sales and prices,” said Gregory Klump, CREA’s Chief Economist. “Moreover, recent monthly sales increases are diminishing, which suggests that the recent rebound may be starting to lose steam.”

The number of newly listed homes was unchanged between July and August, as new supply gains in the Greater Vancouver Area (GVA) and Montreal offset declines in the GTA and Winnipeg.

With sales up slightly and new listings unchanged, the national sales-to-new listings ratio edged up to 56.6% in August compared to 56.2% in July. The long-term average for this measure of market balance is 53.4%.

Considering the degree and duration to which market balance readings are above or below their long-term average is a way of gauging whether local housing market conditions favour buyers or sellers. As a rule of thumb, measures of market balance that are within one standard deviation of their long-term average are generally consistent with balanced market conditions.

Based on a comparison of the sales-to-new listings ratio with the long-term average, about two-thirds of all local markets were in balanced market territory in August 2018.

The number of months of inventory is another important measure for the balance between housing supply and demand. It represents how long it would take to liquidate current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.

There were 5.2 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of August 2018, right in line with the long-term average for the measure.

The Aggregate Composite MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI) was up 2.5% y-o-y in August 2018.

Apartment units posted the largest y-o-y price gains in August (+9.5%), followed by townhouse/row units (+4.3%). Meanwhile, one-storey and two-storey single family home prices were little changed on a y-o-y basis in August (+0.4% and -0.4% respectively).

As of this release, housing market coverage for MLS® HPI now includes Hamilton-Burlington and the Niagara Region.

Trends continue to vary widely among the 17 housing markets tracked by the MLS® HPI. Home price gains are diminishing on a y-o-y basis in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia (GVA: +4.1%; Fraser Valley: +10.7%). Prices in Victoria were up 8.5% y-o-y in August. Elsewhere on Vancouver Island, prices climbed 13.6%.

Among the Greater Golden Horseshoe housing markets tracked by the index, home prices were up from year-ago levels in Hamilton-Burlington (+7.2%), the Niagara Region (+6.6%), Guelph (+5.5%), the GTA (+1.4%) and Oakville-Milton (+1.2%). By contrast, home prices remained down on a y-o-y basis in Barrie and District (-2.7%).

In the Prairies, benchmark home prices remained down on a y-o-y basis in Calgary (-2.2%), Edmonton (-2.1%), Regina (-4.8%) and Saskatoon (-2.3%).

Meanwhile, home prices rose by 7.1% y-o-y in Ottawa (led by an 8.2% increase in two-storey single family home prices), by 5.9% in Greater Montreal (led by a 6.3% increase in two-storey single family home prices) and by 4.8% in Greater Moncton (led by a 7.5% increase in two-storey single family home prices). (Table 1)

The MLS® HPI provides the best way of gauging price trends because average price trends are strongly distorted by changes in the mix of sales activity from one month to the next.

The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average price for homes sold in August 2018 was just over $475,500, up 1% from the same month last year.

The national average price is heavily skewed by sales in the GVA and GTA, two of Canada’s most active and expensive markets. Excluding these two markets from calculations cuts almost $94,000 from the national average price, trimming it to just under $382,000.

– 30 –

PLEASE NOTE: The information contained in this news release combines both major market and national sales information from MLS® Systems from the previous month. 

CREA cautions that average price information can be useful in establishing trends over time, but does not indicate actual prices in centres comprised of widely divergent neighbourhoods or account for price differential between geographic areas. Statistical information contained in this report includes all housing types. 

MLS® Systems are co-operative marketing systems used only by Canada’s real estate Boards to ensure maximum exposure of properties listed for sale. 

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is one of Canada’s largest single-industry trade associations. CREA works on behalf of more than 125,000 REALTORS® who contribute to the economic and social well-being of communities across Canada. Together they advocate for property owners, buyers and sellers.

Further information can be found at http://crea.ca/statistics.

For more information, please contact:

Pierre Leduc, Media Relations
The Canadian Real Estate Association
Tel.: 613-237-7111 or 613-884-1460
E-mail: [email protected]

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Ottawa, ON August 1^st, 2018 – Canadian parents have always asked their REALTORS® about nearby schools when considering a new home and starting today they’ll be able to access school catchment information when looking at property listings on REALTOR.ca, Canada’s #1 real-estate website.

New school catchment information on REALTOR.ca will rollout nationally in phases, with major centers available now (see list below). Coverage will grow to 80% of school boards in Canada by September. An additional feature allowing parents to search for a property within a particular school’s catchment area will be available later in the fall.

“When searching for a home, having supplementary school catchment areas available will help homebuyers make better, more informed decisions when it comes to selecting a home that meets their families’ needs,” said James Mabey, a REALTOR® from Edmonton. “Consumers look beyond pricing, or the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and expect REALTOR.ca to have the latest information on a property.”

Earlier this spring, CREA partnered with Local Logic to add neighbourhood specific lifestyle information to REALTOR.ca property listings.

“We’re very excited to continue expanding our relationship with REALTOR.ca and work with them to develop meaningful products that showcase advances in Canadian real estate technology,” stated Vincent-Charles Hodder, CEO of Local Logic.

To learn more about the new school catchment feature, please visit REALTOR.ca and look for a listing in the current coverage zones.

Cities currently covered: Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa-Gatineau, Edmonton, Quebec, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo, London, St Catharines – Niagara, Halifax, Oshawa, Victoria, Windsor, Saskatoon, Regina

Cities to be added by September: St. John’s, Barrie, Kelowna, Abbotsford-Mission, Sudbury, Kingston, Saguenay, Trois-Rivières, Guelph, Moncton, Brantford, Saint John, Peterborough, Thunder Bay, Lethbridge, Nanaimo, Kamloops, Belleville, Chatham-Kent, Fredericton, Chilliwack, Sherbrooke.

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About Local Logic
Local Logic collects and shares location characteristics to assist prospective buyers, and real estate professionals, in finding just the right spot. Scores ranging from walkability, nearby transit and even street sound levels paint a virtual picture of the location before even setting foot on the property.

About The Canadian Real Estate Association
REALTOR.ca is owned and operated by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), one of Canada’s largest single-industry trade associations. CREA works on behalf of 125,000 REALTORS® who contribute to the economic and social well-being of communities across Canada. Together they advocate for property owners, buyers and sellers. REALTOR.ca provides trusted, up-to-date and comprehensive property advertisements for residential, commercial and rental properties across Canada. Whether you have just started looking or you are ready to make that important purchase, REALTOR.ca connects you to valuable resources and local REALTORS® to help you find your dream property.

For additional information, please contact:
Steve La Barbera
Media Relations, Local Logic
T: 438-994-6444
E: [email protected]

Linda Kristal, Director, Communications
The Canadian Real Estate Association
Tel.: 613-237-7111 or 613-884-1460
E: [email protected]

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Ottawa, ON, June 15, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales were little changed from April to May 2018.

Highlights:

• National home sales edged down 0.1% from April to May.
• Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 16.2% from May 2017.
• The number of newly listed homes rose 5.1% from April to May.
• The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) in May was up 1% year-over-year (y-o-y).
• The national average sale price declined by 6.4% y-o-y in May.

National home sales via Canadian MLS® Systems remained little changed in May 2018. Having edged 0.1% lower, it marked the lowest level for national sales activity in more than five years. (Chart A)

Slightly more than half of all local housing markets reported fewer sales in May compared to April, led by the Okanagan region, Chilliwack and the Fraser Valley, together with the Durham region of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Quebec City. Declines in activity were offset by gains in Calgary, Thunder Bay, Brantford, London and St. Thomas, Oakville-Milton and the Quinte Region west of Kingston. A small increase in GTA sales also supported the national tally.

Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 16.2% compared to May 2017 and reached a seven-year low for the month. It also stood 5.5% below the 10-year average for the month of May. Activity came in below year-ago levels in about 80% of all local markets, led overwhelmingly by those in and around the Lower Mainland of British Columbia and the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH) region in Ontario.

“The stress-test that came into effect this year for homebuyers with more than a twenty percent down payment is continuing to suppress sales activity,” said CREA President Barb Sukkau. “The extent to which it is sidelining home buyers varies among housing markets and price ranges. All real estate is local, and REALTORS® remain your best source for information about sales and listings where you live or might like to in the future,” said Sukkau.

“This year’s new stress-test became even more restrictive in May, since the interest rate used to qualify mortgage applications rose early in the month,” said, Gregory Klump, CREA’s Chief Economist. “Movements in the stresstest interest rate are beyond the control of policy makers. Further increases in the rate could weigh on home sales activity at a time when Canadian economic growth is facing headwinds from U.S. trade policy frictions.”

The number of newly listed homes rose 5.1% in May but remained below year-ago levels. New listings rose in about three-quarters of all local markets, led by Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal, Quebec City, Ottawa and the GTA.

With new listings up and sales virtually unchanged, the national sales-to-new listings ratio eased to 50.6% in May compared to 53.2% in April and stayed within short reach of the long-term average of 53.4%.

A national sales-to-new listings ratio of between 40% and 60% is generally consistent with a balanced national housing market, with readings below and above this range indicating buyers’ and sellers’ markets respectively; however, the range consistent with balanced market conditions varies among local markets.

For that reason, considering the degree and duration that market balance readings are above or below their long-term average is a better way of gauging whether local housing market conditions favour buyers or sellers. Market balance measures that are within one standard deviation of their long-term average are generally consistent with balanced market conditions.

Based on a comparison of the sales-to-new listings ratio with its long-term average, about two-thirds of all local markets were in balanced market territory in May 2018.

The number of months of inventory is another important measure for the balance between housing supply and demand. It represents how long it would take to liquidate current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.

There were 5.7 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of May 2018. While this marks a three-year high for the measure, it remains near the long-term average of 5.2 months.

The Aggregate Composite MLS® HPI was up 1% y-o-y in May 2018, marking the 13th consecutive month of decelerating y-o-y gains. It was also the smallest y-o-y increase since September 2009. (Chart B)

Decelerating y-o-y home price gains largely reflect trends among Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH) housing markets tracked by the index. While home prices in the region have stabilized and begun trending higher on a monthly basis, rapid price gains recorded one year ago have contributed to deteriorating y-o-y price comparisons. If recent trends remain intact, year-over-year comparisons will likely improve in the months ahead.

Apartment units again posted the largest y-o-y price gains in May (+12.7%), followed by townhouse/row units (+4.9%). By contrast, one-storey and two-storey single family home prices were down (-1.5% and -4.7% y-o-y respectively).

Benchmark home prices in May were up from year-ago levels in 8 of the 15 markets tracked by the index.

Composite benchmark home prices in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia continue to trend upward after having dipped briefly in the second half of 2016 (Greater Vancouver (GVA): +11.5% y-o-y; Fraser Valley: +20.6% y-o-y). Apartment and townhouse/row units have been largely driving this regional trend while single family home prices in the GVA have stabilized. In the Fraser Valley, single family home prices have also started rising.

Benchmark home prices were up by 11.5% on a y-o-y basis in Victoria and by 18.1% elsewhere on Vancouver Island.

Within the GGH region, price gains have slowed considerably on a y-o-y basis but remain above year-ago levels in Guelph (+3.8%). By contrast, home prices in the GTA, Oakville-Milton and Barrie were down from where they stood one year earlier (GTA: -5.4% y-o-y; Oakville-Milton: -5.9% y-o-y; Barrie and District: -6.3% y-o-y). This reflects rapid price growth recorded one year ago and masks recent month-over-month price gains in these markets.

Calgary and Edmonton benchmark home prices were down slightly on a y-o-y basis in May (Calgary: -0.5% y-o-y; Edmonton: -0.9% y-o-y), while prices in Regina and Saskatoon were down more noticeably from year-ago levels (-6.2% y-o-y and -2.7% y-o-y, respectively).

Benchmark home prices rose by 8.2% y-o-y in Ottawa (led by a 9.5% increase in two-storey single family home prices), by 6.7% in Greater Montreal (led by a 7.3% increase in two-storey single family home prices) and by 4.3% in Greater Moncton (led by a 4.8% increase in townhouse/row unit prices). (Table 1)

The MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI) provides the best way of gauging price trends because average price trends are strongly distorted by changes in the mix of sales activity from one month to the next.

The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average price for homes sold in May 2018 was just over $496,000, down 6.4% from one year earlier.

The national average price is heavily skewed by sales in the GVA and GTA, two of Canada’s most active and expensive markets. Excluding these two markets from calculations cuts more than $104,000 from the national average price to just over $391,100 and trims the y-o-y decline to 2%.

– 30 –

PLEASE NOTE: The information contained in this news release combines both major market and national sales information from MLS® Systems from the previous month. 

CREA cautions that average price information can be useful in establishing trends over time, but does not indicate actual prices in centres comprised of widely divergent neighbourhoods or account for price differential between geographic areas. Statistical information contained in this report includes all housing types. 

MLS® Systems are co-operative marketing systems used only by Canada’s real estate Boards to ensure maximum exposure of properties listed for sale. 

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is one of Canada’s largest single-industry trade associations. CREA works on behalf of more than 125,000 REALTORS® who contribute to the economic and social well-being of communities across Canada. Together they advocate for property owners, buyers and sellers.

Further information can be found at http://crea.ca/statistics.

For more information, please contact:

Pierre Leduc, Media Relations
The Canadian Real Estate Association
Tel.: 613-237-7111 or 613-884-1460
E-mail: [email protected]

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