Canadian housing starts increased 4 per cent from the previous month, totalling 294,085 units in July at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). Starts were up 7 per cent from the same month last year. Single-detached housing starts decreased by 1 per cent from last month to 55,740 units, while multi-family and other starts increased by 5 per cent to 238,342 units (SAAR). 

In British Columbia, starts fell by 15 per cent from last month to 56,918 units (SAAR) in all areas of the province. In areas of the province with 10,000 or more residents, single-detached starts increased by 1 per cent to 3,953 units, while multi-family starts fell by 17 per cent to 50,394 units month-over-month. Starts in the province were 16 per cent above the levels from July 2024. Year-to-date starts are up 147 per cent in Abbotsford and 29 per cent in Victoria, but down 71 per cent in Nanaimo, 36 per cent in Kelowna, and 5 per cent in Vancouver.

Click here for the article link

Economics Now is produced by the British Columbia Real Estate Association. Copyright British Columbia Real Estate Association. Reprinted with permission." BCREA makes no guarantees as to the accuracy or completeness of this information.

Canadian Home sales increased 3.8% in July, marking a fourth consecutive monthly gain and an 11.2% rise since March. Find out why Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s Senior Economist, notes this may signal the long-awaited post-inflation crisis rebound. September’s typical surge in listings will be one to watch.

The latest data from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) shows the number of home sales in Canada climbed 3.8% in July compared to June.

In the eyes of CREA’s Senior Economist Shaun Cathcart, “that’s a trend, for sure.”

“With every month that goes by here, I think we can say more and more that the rebound we’ve been forecasting for the last year… was just delayed by a few months and now we’re sort of in it,” Cathcart said during this month’s CREA Housing Market Report (watch the full report below).

Before we break down all the latest data, here’s what you need to know at a glance:

• National home sales were up 3.8% month-over-month.

• Actual (not seasonally adjusted) home sales came in 6.6% higher when compared to July of last year.

• The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average sale price edged up 0.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Click here for viewing the complete article with full details!

August21, 2025

Second-Half Recovery in 2025 Sets Up a Brighter 2026

BCREA 2025 Third Quarter Housing Forecast Update

Vancouver, BC – August 21, 2025. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) released its 2025 Third Quarter Housing Forecast Update today.

Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) residential sales in BC are forecast to fall 2.2 per cent to 72,840 units this year. In 2026, MLS® residential sales are forecast to move higher, rising 10.7 per cent to 80,600 units.

“Trade-related uncertainty upended hopes for a more normal market through the first half of 2025,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “While provincial home sales remain weak overall, particularly in the Lower Mainland, many markets are now returning to long-run average sales activity and should head into 2026 with some momentum.”
 
With slower sales over the past few years, provincial resale inventory has stabilized at just over 40,000 listings, a level not seen in over a decade. As a result, we expect regions with stronger demand to experience modest price growth, while weaker markets such as the Lower Mainland are expected to face downward pressure on prices. However, overall, we forecast largely flat average prices this year, with prices rising slightly in 2026 as markets balance out.

August 13, 2025

Click here for the Housing Market Update charts.

Read the news release here. 

Click here to visit BCREA's YouTube channel.

(July 2025) –August 19, 2025

Canadian prices, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose 1.7 per cent on a year-over-year basis in July, down from a 1.9 per cent increase in June. Month-over-month, on a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI was up 0.1 per cent in July. Downward pressure on headline inflation was driven by a sharper fall in gasoline prices year-over-year compared to June. The CPI ex-gasoline has held at 2.5 per cent over the past three months.  Additionally, shelter price growth rose for the first time since February 2024, with prices growing by 3.0 per cent in July, slightly up from 2.9 per cent in June. Food purchased in grocery stores rose at a faster pace of 3.4 per cent year-over-year compared to 2.8 per cent the previous month. In BC, consumer prices rose 1.7 per cent year-over-year in July, down from 2.1 per cent in June. The Bank of Canada's preferred measures of median and trimmed inflation, which strip out volatile components, are 3.1 per cent and 3.0 per cent year-over-year, respectively. 
 
July's CPI report continues to show a divergence between headline and core inflation, largely due to monthly fluctuations in energy prices. The Bank of Canada's core measures of inflation have remained at the upper end—and even outside of—their target range for the past three months as tariffs continue passing through the economy. With 3-month annualized core inflation dropping a full point to 2.4 per cent, this report slightly favours a rate cut from the Bank of Canada in September, as the downside risks to growth remain strong from ongoing trade uncertainties. 

Disclaimer: Economics Now is produced by the British Columbia Real Estate Association. Copyright British Columbia Real Estate Association. Reprinted with permission. BCREA makes no guarantees as to the accuracy or completeness of this information.

August 13, 2025

Market Activity Strengthens as Uncertainty Wanes

Vancouver, BC – August 13, 2025. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that 7,056 residential unit sales were recorded in Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) Systems in July 2025, up 2.2 per cent from July 2024. The average MLS® residential price in BC in July 2025 was down 2.1 per cent at $942,686 compared to $963,047 in July 2024.

The total sales dollar volume was $6.7 billion, virtually unchanged from the same time the previous year. BC MLS® unit sales were 16 per cent lower than the ten-year July average.
 
“Housing markets across BC continue to build momentum through the summer, with all regions apart from the Lower Mainland boasting higher sales activity from the previous year,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “With a stable trajectory for monetary policy, we expect sales in the province will continue to improve as tariff uncertainties fade.”
 
Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume is down 9.4 per cent to $40.8 billion, compared with the same period in 2024. Residential unit sales are down 5.7 per cent year-over-year at 42,895 units, while the average MLS® residential price is also down 3.9 per cent to $952,323.

Disclaimer: Economics Now is produced by the British Columbia Real Estate Association. Copyright British Columbia Real Estate Association. Reprinted with permission. BCREA makes no guarantees as to the accuracy or completeness of this information.

Monday, August 11, 2025

Home sales registered on the MLS® across Metro Vancouver in July extended the early signs of recovery that emerged in June, now down just two per cent from July of last year. 

Although sales activity is now recovering, this healthy level of inventory is sufficient to keep home prices trending sideways over the short term as supply and demand remain relatively balanced.

Here's a summary of the July 2025 housing market statistics.

July 24, 2025

Even though home sales picked up for the second straight month in June, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is now forecasting a 3% drop in sales for the year compared to 2024.

The latest housing data shows the number of Canadian home sales rose 2.8% on a month-over-month basis in June, led by the Greater Toronto Area’s resurgence that has seen home sales climb 17.4% cumulatively since April.

“At the overall national level, June was kind of a carbon copy of May in a lot of ways,” said CREA’s Senior Economist Shaun Cathcart in the latest CREA Housing Market Report (watch below), “which is good, because it means sales were up again and prices held steady again, as opposed to falling.”

Click here to view the full article page!