Real estate: Home prices rebound as spring market picks up
BNN Bloomberg
A recovery in Canadian home prices accelerated in April, as warming weather brought a surge of buyers back into the market to compete for a limited number of properties.
The benchmark price for a home in Canada rose to $723,900 (about US$536,000), up 1.6 per cent from March on a seasonally adjusted basis. Transactions surged 11.3 per cent from the month before, but new supply of homes is near a 20-year low, according to data from the Canadian Real Estate Association.
After an abrupt rise in borrowing costs triggered a sharp correction in home prices last year, the Bank of Canada’s decision to pause rate hikes seems to be helping spark a turnaround. It means the cost of variable-rate mortgages is holding steady, while longer-term fixed mortgage rates have edged down recently due to a rally in government bonds.
In addition, Canada’s population is swelling — more than a million newcomers arrived last year — bringing attention once again to a shortage of housing stock and prompting some buyers to make aggressive bids.
