New house prices rise for the second consecutive month in Canada
The national index rose by 0.2% on a month-over-month basis in May and prices grew in 10 of the 27 census metropolitan areas (CMAs) surveyed. This was the first month since June 2022 that prices increased in 10 or more CMAs.
The largest month-over-month increases in May 2024 were reported in Trois-Rivières (+2.0%), Calgary (+1.3%) and Halifax (+1.1%). Builders in these CMAs attributed the price gains to construction costs and improving market conditions. Meanwhile, Trois-Rivières is one of the most affordable cities in Canada.
According to the Building construction price indexes release for the first quarter of 2024, the cost to build residential homes has been gradually rising for both single-detached homes (+6.2%) and townhouses (+6.6%) in Calgary (first quarter of 2024, year over year). In Halifax, the cost was even higher for both single-detached homes (+9.8%) and townhouses (+10.0%) during the same reference period.
The largest monthly declines of new housing prices in May were recorded in London (-0.8%) and Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo (-0.4%), linked to weak market conditions due to elevated borrowing costs.
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