Housing prices in Canada and Ontario likely to see end of declines this spring

Recent trends in the Canadian housing market have been unpredictable, to say the least. That is until now, when just last month, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) noted a substantially stable period between January and February, breaking a months-long trend of price declines established last fall. 

As indicated in the report — which uses seasonally adjusted data — this timeline deviates from the current trend in the Canadian housing market, as housing prices saw a drop of 1.3 per cent in the month prior. 

However, according to the CREA, this current state of equilibrium isn’t built to last. 

“It’s looking like February may end up being the last relatively uneventful month of the year as far as the 2024 housing story goes,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s Senior Economist in an official statement. 

According to the data collected, there have only been three recorded incidents of similar economic behaviour in the last 20 years, and CREA analysts predict a substantial shift is on the horizon for the upcoming spring season. 

There’s a feeling that things are about to pick up,” said Larry Cerqua, chair of CREA, in an official statement. “At this point, it’s hard to know whether buyers are going to wait for a signal from the Bank of Canada or whether they’re just waiting for the spring listings to hit the market.”

The next anticipated report from CREA is slated to hit mid-April, and it will confirm whether the anticipated shifts in the spring market will come to fruition.