CANADIAN HOME SALES, PRICES FALL FOR SECOND STRAIGHT MONTH AS INTEREST RATES RISE
Jun 15, 2022
By Bob Komsic
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The cooling of the national housing market continued in May with sales dropping by nearly 22% since last year and almost 9% between April and May.
The Canadian Real Estate Association says the declines were steeper in April, but that May’s numbers still resembled the level of activity seen in the second half of 2019 – before COVID-19.
Last month’s sales were down in three-quarters of Canada, with the largest declines in major centres including Toronto.
CREA had predicted the market would eventually slow once interest rates started to rise but didn’t expect borrowing costs to rise so fast.
One economist says the new interest rate reality is tarting to sink in.
”A correction in Canadian housing is well underway across a number of markets, said Robert Kavcic of the Bank of Montreal.
”A long, cold summer likely lies ahead.”
The CEO of brokerage firm Mortgages of Canada, Samantha Brookes, says some homeowners who bought during the peak at the start of the year are thinking about selling, ”but they may take a loss.”