Canadian Home Sales Slide Amid Market Uncertainty and Weak Buyer Demand
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In March 2025, Canadian home sales experienced a significant decline, dropping 4.8% month-over-month and 20% from their recent peak in November 2024. This downturn is largely attributed to ongoing "tariff turmoil," which has deterred potential buyers despite multiple interest rate cuts by the Bank of Canada. The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) reported that March 2025 marked the slowest March for home sales since 2009, with national sales also falling 9.3% year-over-year.
In response to these trends, CREA has revised its 2025 forecast, now projecting 482,673 residential property sales—a downward adjustment of 8.6% from its January forecast. This figure also represents a slight 0.02% decrease compared to 2024's sales levels. Looking ahead to 2026, CREA anticipates a modest increase of 2.9% in national home sales, reaching 496,487 units. Despite these projections, sales are expected to remain below the half-million mark for the fourth consecutive year, a threshold surpassed seven times since 2007.
The housing market's challenges are further underscored by a 3% month-over-month increase in new listings in March, leading to a sales-to-new listings ratio of 45.9%—the lowest since February 2009. This ratio suggests the market is approaching buyer's territory. Additionally, the national composite Home Price Index (HPI) declined by 1% between February and March 2025, with the most significant price softening observed in British Columbia and Ontario's Greater Golden Horseshoe region.
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