Canada sees steady year on year property price growth
29-06-2012
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Year on year gains had been slowing through the end of last year and now have stabilised at close to 5% so far this year.
The HPI posted the largest year on year increase in Greater Toronto at 7.9%, followed by Calgary at 4.8%, Greater Vancouver at 3.3%, the Fraser Valley at 2.4% and Montreal at 2.2%.
Year on year price gains again picked up speed in Calgary, with May marking the largest year on year gain there in nearly two years. The increase lifted the HPI for Calgary to its highest level since August 2008.
By contrast, year on year gains continued to shrink in Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. Price gains in Greater Toronto and Montreal held their ground in May compared to April. Greater Toronto also remains the hottest market tracked by the index, with single family homes in its urban core continuing to sell briskly.
‘While price gains overall are running steady, diverging trends among local markets show clearly that all real estate is truly local,’ said Wayne Moen, CREA president.
Among the Benchmark housing types tracked by the index, two storey single family homes continued posting the strongest year on year growth in May at 6.7%. Gains for one storey single family homes were 5.8% and also surpassed the rise in the overall index, while townhouses and apartments saw more modest gains of 3.3% and 2.95% respectively.
‘Home price gains in Greater Toronto continue to eclipse those in other markets. Gains are also starting to pick up speed in Calgary after months of stability. As always, prospects for home price trends depend on buyers’ willingness to pay and sellers’ expectations and motivations, both of which are tied to economic, labour market, and interest rate prospects,’ said Gregory Klump, CREA’s chief economist.
‘With European sovereign debt and banking issues likely to cloud the global economic outlook, Canadian interest rates will remain at or very near current levels. The continuation of low interest rates will continue to support Canadian housing activity and prices for some time to come,’ he added.
