OTTAWA, April 27, 2012 /CNW/ - The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI), the
leading measure of Canadian home prices, stayed above year-ago levels
in March 2012 according to statistics released today by The Canadian
Real Estate Association (CREA). Year-over-year gains have been
moderating. The increase in March was the smallest since last June.
Highlights:
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The Aggregate Composite MLS® Home Price Index in March 2012 was up 5.1%
year-over-year - on par with the gain in February and the smallest
increase since June 2011.
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Toronto posted the largest year-over-year increase (7.3%), followed by
Vancouver (5.3%), the Fraser Valley (3.3%), Calgary (2.6%), and
Montreal (2.2%).
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Year-over-year gains were largest for one-and two-storey single family
homes, which rose 5.4% and 6.8% respectively. Apartment prices climbed
3%, and townhouse prices were up 2.6%.
The MLS® Home Price Index rose 5.1 per cent in March 2012 compared to
the same month last year. The increase was on par with February's gain,
which was the smallest since last June.
"Overall price trends show that Canada's housing market continues to
moderate," said Wayne Moen, CREA President. "Price increases have been
shrinking since last fall. While that trend paused in March, it may in
part reflect an early spring in many parts of the country, resulting in
increased competition among buyers. That said, headline numbers mask
some important differences in price trends among local housing markets
and housing types. Since all real estate is local, buyers and sellers
should talk to their local REALTOR® to best understand how home price
trends are shaping up where they live."
The MLS® HPI remained above its year-ago level in all five of the
markets tracked, led by Toronto (7.3%).
It also held above year-ago levels in all housing categories tracked,
led by two-storey single family homes (6.8%).
The MLS® HPI rose 1.3 per cent from to February to March 2012.
"The index typically experiences these types of month-over-month gains
in the spring, which coincides with when the balance of supply to
demand is tightest," said Gregory Klump, CREA's Chief Economist. "With
that in mind, it's important to look at month-to-month movements in the
context of how they compare to the same period in previous years. While
the overall monthly price increase was on par with last year's figure,
it masks slowing price momentum in the Lower Mainland area of British
Columbia. Slower price gains there were offset in March by a modest
acceleration of price gains in Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal."
In focus: Some of the trends underlying the overall MLS® HPI
Momentum in the overall MLS® HPI held steady between February and March
2012, with equal year-over-year gains of 5.1 per cent. However, because
the MLS® HPI is composed of four Benchmark housing types and more than
1,600 sub-areas spread among five housing markets, the overall index
can mask price trend variations among Benchmark housing categories
within a single housing market and between different parts of the
country.
Price gains for two-storey single family homes have surpassed this in
other housing categories since the beginning of the economic recovery.
Despite a recent deceleration in gains, two-storey single family homes
posted the strongest year-over-year price gains in March. By contrast,
price gains for one-storey single family homes picked up in March,
which was driven mainly by increases in Montreal and Toronto.
Price growth remains much stronger for one-and two-storey single family
homes compared to multi-family units, with price gains for single
family homes (6.4%) running roughly double that for townhouse units
(2.6%) or apartment units (3.0%). Even so, there are significant
differences between housing markets.
In Montreal, townhouse unit prices are rising faster than prices for
other housing types. This likely reflects the desirability of their
location, since townhouse units are predominantly centrally located
while single family homes are often located further from Montreal's
city centre.
Price gains have remained strongest in Toronto since mid-2011. The rise
in Toronto's Composite MLS® HPI was a full two per cent above the
year-over-year increase in Vancouver's composite index. This represents
the largest spread for price growth between these two markets in more
than a year. This gap may widen further, since the Vancouver market is
showing signs of coming off the boil while a lack of available supply
relative to demand keeps Toronto's housing market in seller's market
territory.
For additional information, including interactive tables, please go to: www.homepriceindex.ca.
MLS® is a co-operative marketing system used only by Canada's real
estate Boards to ensure maximum exposure of properties listed for sale.
The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is one of Canada's largest
single-industry trade associations, representing more than 100,000
REALTORS® working through more than 100 real estate Boards and
Associations.
Further statistical information can be found at http://crea.ca/statistics.
