September 15, 2023 /CNW/ OTTAWA, ON According to data from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) that was made public today, August 2023 saw a decrease in national house sales month over month.
Highlights
• In August, national house sales fell 4.1% on a month-over-month basis.
The actual monthly activity, which was not seasonally adjusted, was 5.3% higher than August 2022.
• Month-over-month, the quantity of newly listed properties increased by 0.8%.
• The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) increased 0.4% in the previous month and 0.4% in the previous year.
• In August, the real (seasonally adjusted) national average sale price showed a 2.1% increase in comparison to the previous year.
Between July and August of 2023, home sales reported via Canadian MLS® Systems saw a 4.1% decrease.
August’s national sales number was dragged down by reductions in Hamilton-Burlington, Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, London, St. Thomas, Montreal, and Ottawa.
The real number of transactions—which is not seasonally adjusted—was 5.3% higher than in August 2022.
“Demand and supply are continuing to come into better balance with sales slowing and new listings returning to more normal levels,” stated CREA Chair Larry Cerqua. Customers now have more time and options thanks to this. Speak with a REALTOR® in your neighborhood if you need advice and information on how to purchase or sell a home this autumn, continuing Cerqua.
“A decline in activity was anticipated, as August was the first complete month of housing data after the Bank of Canada’s July rate hike,” stated Shaun Cathcart, Senior Economist at CREA. “Clearly, demand is still there and will continue to be strong, but for the time being, the slowdown on the buyer side should help keep prices in check as the housing affordability crisis resurfaces as a major policy concern.”
August saw a minor increase in the quantity of newly listed houses, up 0.8% month over month after experiencing a spike of more than 24% from March to July. Although they began 2023 at a 20-year low, new postings are currently approaching typical levels.
The sales-to-new listings ratio decreased to 56.2% in August from 59% in July and a peak of 67.4% in April as a result of declining sales and a little increase in new listings. At this point, the metric is back to its average of 55.2% over the long run.
By the end of August 2023, there was 3.4 months of inventories nationwide, up from 3.2 months in July. The metric is still below the second half of 2022 and considerably below its long-term average of roughly five months, even though it has slightly increased from its recent low of 3.1 months in May and June.
August 2023 saw a 0.4% month-over-month increase in the Aggregate Composite MLS® Home Price Index (HPI), which is just almost half as much as the gain in July, which was only roughly half as great as the advances in April, May, and June. Prices are leveling off in tandem with a slowdown in sales and an increase in listings.
Regional disparities are resurfacing even as national prices are leveling off. The East Coast and Quebec have seen the strongest price growth, followed by the Prairies and British Columbia. With some of the larger rises and some of the larger drops, Ontario is still a mixed bag.
The Aggregate Composite MLS® HPI was up 0.4% year over year as of August 2023. Since September 2022, this was the first gain over the previous year. Given how prices declined through the second half of 2022, even if prices seem to be leveling out near present levels, year-over-year comparisons will probably continue to grow in the months to come.
August 2023 saw a 2.1% increase in the actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average home price to $650,140 from August 2022.
REMEMBER: The data in this press release is a combination of national and key market sales data from MLS® Systems for the preceding month.
CREA issues a warning, stating that while average price data can be helpful in identifying patterns over time, it cannot represent true costs in cities with a high degree of neighborhood variation or take into consideration price differences across different geographic locations. This report’s statistical data encompasses all kinds of housing.
The only cooperative marketing systems utilized by real estate boards in Canada to guarantee that properties posted for sale receive the most exposure are called MLS® Systems.
About The Canadian Real Estate Association
Through 72 real estate boards and associations, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) represents over 160,000 REALTORS®, making it one of the largest single-industry organisations in Canada.
Additional details are available at http://crea.ca/statistics.
Canadian Real Estate Association as a source
GET IN TOUCH:
Pierre Leduc, Media Relations
The Canadian Real Estate Association
Tel.: 613-237-7111 or 613-884-1460
E-mail: pleduc@crea.ca
