After four years of a precipitous roller coaster ride, housing markets across Canada have returned to a more stable level in April, says a report from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). At the national level, sales dropped 1.7% from March, but new listings, which have long been missing, increased by 2.8% over the same period. The lower sales and higher listings resulted in a 6.5% increase in properties on the market, the highest level since the onset of COVID-19 and one of the largest month-over-month gains on record, second only to those seen during the sharp market downturn in early 2022, says the CREA report. April 2024 was decidedly different than April 2023, says Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s senior economist. “April 2023 was characterized by a surge of buyers re-entering a market with new listings at 20-year lows, whereas this spring thus far has been the opposite, with a healthier number of properties to choose from but less enthusiasm on the demand side,” says Cathcart, adding sales last April were 10.1% higher than April last year. With the increase in supply, the MLS Home Price Index (HPI) was unchanged month-over-month but dipped 0.9% year-over-year, while the national average sale price decreased 1.8% year-over-year in April. The months of supply increased to 4.2 months on a national basis at the end of April 2024, up from 3.9 months at the end of March and the highest level since the onset of the pandemic. The long-term average is about five months of inventory. “With sales down and new listings up in April, the national sales-to-new listings ratio eased to 53.4%,” says Cathcart. “The long-term average for the national sales-to-new listings ratio is 55%. A sales-to-new listings ratio between 45% and 65% is generally consistent with balanced housing market conditions, with readings above and below this range indicating sellers’ and buyers’ markets respectively.” The roller coaster ride is over, for now at least, says James Mabey, the newly-appointed chair of CREA’s 2024-2025 Board of Directors. “After a long hibernation, the spring market is now officially underway. The increase in listings is resulting in the most balanced market conditions we’ve seen at the national level since before the pandemic,” says Mabey. “Mortgage rates are still high, and it remains difficult for a lot of people to break into the market but, for those who can, it’s the first spring market in some time where they can shop around, take their time and exercise some bargaining power.” “Given how much demand is out there, it’s hard to say how long it will last. Market conditions vary across the country.” On a regional basis prices are generally sliding sideways across most of the country, says CREA, the outliers being Calgary, Edmonton, and Saskatoon, where prices have steadily ticked higher since the beginning of last year. The aggregate benchmark price in Calgary rose from $534,200 in 2023 to $587,300; Edmonton from $370,000 to$390,200; Saskatoon from $374,300 to $398,600. The national average* home price was $703,446 in April 2024, down 1.8% from April 2023. Here are April 2024 average prices compared to April 2023 across Canada, with the 2023 price first and 2024 price second: Yukon: $497,567/$533,732 NWT: $466,744/$466.744 BC: $992,400/$1,008,497 ALTA: $459,798/$494,150 SASK: $324,300/$339,800 MAN: $382,658/$353,589 ONT: $908,149/$900,181 QUE: $482,443/$516,020 NLL: $276,100/$292,200 NB: $278,500/$304,400 NS: $397,200/$415,400 PEI: $351,900/$355,500 *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.
