Canadian home sales rose 2.5% from February to March, according to new data from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). Actual activity (not seasonally adjusted) stood 1.6% above levels in March 2011, the smallest year-over-year increase since last April.
According to CREA, the number of newly listed homes eased 0.3% from February to March. The national average home price edged down 0.5% on a year-over-year basis in March. Activity in March was up from the previous month in two-thirds of all local markets, with Toronto, Calgary, and Edmonton contributing most to the national increase.
A total of 108,373 homes traded hands in the first three months of the year. This is 5% above the five-year average for first quarter sales, 3.8% above the 10-year average, and 4.4% above activity in the first quarter of 2011.
‘The spring housing market is off to a good start,’ says Wayne Moen, CREA's president. ‘The number of sales and newly listed properties are up from levels last year, and the vast majority of housing markets remain balanced.’