Canadian Home Sales See Smallest July Advance In 15 Years

OTTAWA — Canadian home prices rose in July, led by the Quebec City and Ottawa-Gatineau markets, though it was the smallest July advance in 15 years, data showed on Thursday, confirming the slowing of the housing market in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index, which tracks data collected from public land registries to measure changes for repeat sales of single-family homes, showed prices were up 0.3 per cent in July from June.

If the index was corrected for seasonal pressures, there would have been a decline of 0.3 per cent in July, the second consecutive monthly decline, said Marc Pinsonneault, a senior economist at the National Bank of Canada.

Prices rose in nine of the 11 metropolitan areas in the index, with the Quebec City region up 1.4 per cent and the government hub of Ottawa-Gatineau gaining 1.2 per cent. The index was flat for Vancouver and slipped 0.3 per cent in Victoria.

Compared with the same month a year ago, the index climbed by 5.5 per cent, the second consecutive month of year-over-year deceleration, said Pinsonneault.

The number of repeat sales used to derive indexes fell 20 per cent year-over-year, reflecting a decline in home sales due to physical distancing measures to stem the spread of COVID-19.

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