May home sales up compared with April in Mississauga, but still well below year-ago level

 

OTTAWA -- The Canadian Real Estate Association says home sales in May regained some of the ground they lost when they hit a record low in April, but remained down sharply compared with a year ago.

The association says national home sales for May were down 39.8 per cent compared with the same month last year, even after rising 56.9 per cent from the previous month.

CREA says May was the weakest showing for the month since 1996.

The sales came as the number of newly listed homes rose by a record 69 per cent in May compared with April.

The national average price for homes sold in May was $494,500, down 2.6 per cent from the same month last year.

Excluding the Greater Vancouver and the Greater Toronto Area, two of Canada's most active and expensive housing markets, the average price was about $401,000.

The Canadian Press