Canadian housing market expected to remain strong this fall, despite Delta variant, say RE/MAX brokers and realtors
Young families driving demand for single-detached homes in cities across the country
- Canadian housing market prices are anticipated to increase by 5% in the remaining months of 2021, according to RE/MAX brokers and agents.
- 26/29 major Canadian housing markets analyzed are seller’s markets, driven by lack of supply and high demand.
Toronto, ON and Kelowna, BC, October 5, 2021 – Early indicators from RE/MAX brokers and agents across the Canadian housing market suggest steady activity for the remainder of 2021. According to the RE/MAX Canada 2021 Fall Housing Market Outlook Report, RE/MAX brokers and agents expect the average residential sale price for all home types could increase by five per cent from now until the end of the year.
Single-detached homes experienced the biggest price gains when comparing 2021* to 2020 data, rising between 6.8 and 27.3 per cent across 26 markets surveyed in the report. RE/MAX brokers and agents expect this trend to continue into the fall, driven by strong demand by young families.
“As our brokers and agents predict, the fall market activity is expected to remain steady, which is promising, despite the ongoing challenges presented by the Delta variant,” says Christopher Alexander, Senior Vice President, RE/MAX Canada. “This is particularly relevant given the Canadian housing markets is often a good indicator of economic activity in the country, and with the Bank of Canada forecasting economic growth of 4.5 per cent in 2022, a strong fall housing market is a good sign that things may be starting to return to a more natural rhythm.”
Regional Canadian Housing Market Overview
Ontario
Unsurprisingly, Ontario has seen some of the highest average residential price increases across single-detached homes in the country, with the majority of regions (13 out of 16), experiencing increases between 20 and 35.5 per cent YoY. The outlier markets that experienced price increases below 20 per cent include Toronto (+14.6 per cent), Thunder Bay (+17.1 per cent) and Mississauga (+19.7 per cent).
The condo and townhome segment in all of these regions has also performed well, with smaller and more suburban markets such as Kitchener, North Bay, London, Peterborough, and Southern Georgian Bay seeing a higher surge YoY. The estimated price outlook for the remainder of the year ranges from a two-per-cent price decrease in North Bay, to increases across the other regions ranging between two and 15 per cent.