Canadian Real Estate Sets Another Record

Real Estate in Canada has set new levels for sales ina year by sales volume and dollar amount.

Canadian real-estate markets clinch early record

Derek Abma, CanWest News Service Published: Monday, December 17, 2007
OTTAWA -- With one month's activity still unaccounted for, the Canadian Real Estate Association said Monday that listed residential real-estate transactions in most major markets are already at record levels.

Data from the country's 25 biggest markets show 345,577 sales of existing homes in November through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which is 2.7% ahead of the previous record of 336,646 sales in 2005.

There was a seasonally adjusted level of 29,992 sales last month, up 3.2% from October. This was driven by increased activity in Vancouver, Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary and Saskatoon, CREA said. On an unadjusted basis, November sales were up 7.6% from a year earlier.

A monthly record for sales was reached in Newfoundland and Labrador, the second-highest number of monthly sales was recorded in Saskatoon and Regina, and Vancouver and Toronto both had their third-most sales ever in November.

"Sales activity continues to run strong, even if it is off its peak set earlier this year in nearly all major markets," CREA chief economist Gregory Klump said in a statement. "Demand remains strong due to continuing job and income growth, and upbeat consumer confidence. That is helping retain a seller's market in most major markets."

The average sale price was $332,807 last month, up 11.6% from a year earlier. That marked the seventh-straight month that prices were up more than 10%. Average-price records were set in Montreal, Quebec City, Victoria and Kitchener-Waterloo, Ont.

BMO Capital Markets Economics said these numbers "show that resale activity barely blinked in the face of the severe credit squalls in the fall." Financial Post Article.

Go Canada.