The number of homes that changed hands across the country in December was up 19.2 per cent compared with a year earlier, as the Canadian Real Estate Association says a strong fourth quarter bodes well for a rebound in sales in 2025.
The association says the final three months of last year saw sales rise 10 per cent from the third quarter, marking one of the busiest quarters in the last 20 years, aside from the pandemic.
On a seasonally adjusted month-over-month basis, Canadian home sales in December fell 5.8 per cent from November, but remained 13 per cent above where they were in May, just before the Bank of Canada’s first of five interest rate cuts last year.
CREA senior economist Shaun Cathcart says the association continues to forecast a “significant unleashing of demand” this spring, when it expects interest rates to bottom out and sellers to list properties in big numbers.
The national average sale price for December rose 2.5 per cent compared with a year earlier to $676,640.
The number of newly listed properties was down 1.7 per cent month-over-month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2025.
