Canadian home sales dipped in April 2024 when compared to March, even as the number of properties available for sale rose to kick off the spring market, reported the Canadian Real Estate Association.
Home sales activity recorded over Canadian MLS Systems fell 1.7% between March and April 2024, coming in a little below the average of the last 10 years, said the national organization.
At the same time, the number of newly listed homes rose by 2.8% on a month-over-month basis. Slower sales amid more new listings resulted in a 6.5% jump in the overall number of properties on the market, reaching its highest level since just before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was also one of the largest month-over-month gains on record, second only to those seen during the sharp market slowdown of early 2022, said the report.
“April 2023 was characterized by a surge of buyers re-entering a market with new listings at 20-year lows, whereas this spring thus far has been the opposite, with a healthier number of properties to choose from but less enthusiasm on the demand side,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s Senior Economist.
CREA said the actual (not seasonally adjusted) number of transactions came in 10.1% above April 2023; however, a significant part of that gain likely reflected the timing of the Easter long weekend.
“With sales down and new listings up in April, the national sales-to-new listings ratio eased to 53.4%. The long-term average for the national sales-to-new listings ratio is 55%. A sales-to-new listings ratio between 45% and 65% is generally consistent with balanced housing market conditions, with readings above and below this range indicating sellers’ and buyers’ markets respectively,” it said.
“There were 4.2 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of April 2024, up from 3.9 months at the end of March and the highest level since the onset of the pandemic. The long-term average is about five months of inventory.”
It said the National Composite MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) was unchanged from March to April, marking the third straight month of mostly stable prices. The not seasonally adjusted National Composite MLS®HPI dipped 0.9% on a year-over-year basis, the first decline since last July. This mostly reflects how prices took off last April, something that has not yet been repeated in 2024.
The actual national average home price was $703,446 in April 2024, down 1.8% from April 2023, it added.
Mario Toneguzzi
Mario Toneguzzi is Managing Editor of Canada’s Podcast. He has more than 40 years of experience as a daily newspaper writer, columnist, and editor. He was named in 2021 as one of the Top 10 Business Journalists in the World by PR News – the only Canadian to make the list. He was also named by RETHINK to its global list of Top Retail Experts 2024.
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