The Teranet-National Bank HPI jumped 2.8% in May to an all-time high. It was the 19th straight monthly increase and the largest ever since the index began in 1999. Its recent vigour coincides with historically high numbers of home sales in most regions of Canada, combined with limited supply. Market conditions accordingly remain very much in favour of sellers and price growth. After seasonal adjustment the monthly jump of the unsmoothed HPI was slightly smaller at 2.1%, bringing the unsmoothed index to a spectacular cumulative gain of 17.0% since last June. Home price growth remained rapid in the great majority of Canadian cities: June prices were up 10% or more from a year earlier in an unprecedented 90% of the 32 urban markets surveyed and by 30% or more in 42% of those markets. The 12-month price growth for single-family homes continues to outpace that of the condo segment. The latter continues to lag as buyer preferences shift from small dwellings in city centres to larger homes in the suburbs. This divergence may not last long, as affordability has decreased in the non-condo segment.

June 2021