The median price of Canadian homes was up by 6.2% year-over-year in the first three months of 2018 to $605,512, but half of key markets saw prices slip.
Royal Le Page’s latest National Home Price Composite shows that there was little change in quarter-over-quarter prices nationwide, but again around half of markets saw slight declines.
The declines were most prevalent in the detached home sector in the Greater Toronto Area and (to a lesser extent) in Greater Vancouver.
"We are experiencing a broad-based, residential housing correction in Canada, triggered by federal and provincial intervention," said Phil Soper, president and CEO, Royal LePage. "Strong house price gains in the first half of 2017 mask some of the recent market shifts when comparing year-over-year home value trends. As is the norm in our huge nation, regional themes play out differently, with economically expanding, affordable markets seeing less change than areas where home prices overshot. Regulators were concerned primarily with the large GTA market, and it is there we are seeing the most pronounced short-term changes."
The condo market in Greater Vancouver showed the strongest annual rise in median price, rising 19.8% to $668,342. In the GTA, the median price of a condominium increased 11.9% year-over-year to $471,854 in the first quarter, and decreased slightly on a quarter-over-quarter basis, by 1.3%.
While the figures show some issues, especially for the hottest markets, Soper says that the fundamentals are positive, and baring a major global economic shock, the national housing market should grow.
"Canada's stature is rising on a global scale. Our cities continue to be ranked among the most desired places to live in the world. Our economy is strong, our unemployment levels are the lowest they've been in four decades and we have one of the fastest-growing populations among advanced economies. These factors combined are incredibly supportive of long-term housing demand and valuations,” he said.
