This is Where You Should Buy Real Estate in Canada

The Canadian real estate market is in full stabilization mode following a year-long correction amid rising interest rates. Put simply, sales activity is rebounding, and home prices are climbing. Despite mortgage rates at the highest level they have been in years, the nation’s housing market is quite different from what it was a year ago.

With the pandemic-era volatility in the rearview mirror, the latest conditions are ideal for buyers and sellers because they offer more certainty than the dramatic gains in 2020 and 2021 and the exceptional declines in 2022.

For prospective homebuyers, a more stable environment affords them the opportunity to assess the fundamental components of making the most significant purchasing decision of their life, from the size of the residential property to the neighbourhood. Of course, the latter is critical since this could affect everyone in your home, be it your child’s school or your commute to work.

That said, where would be the places to live in Canada?

Here is a list of the top 10 cities today:

1. Greater Moncton, New Brunswick
2. Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
3. North Bay, Ontario
4. Fredericton, New Brunswick
5. Saint John, New Brunswick
6. Halifax, Nova Scotia
7. Windsor, Ontario
8. Regina, Saskatchewan
9. Edmonton, Alberta
10. Sudbury, Ontario

How are these markets performing? Let’s take a deeper dive into how they have been doing in 2023:

Greater Moncton

In June, residential property sales plummeted more than 20 per cent year-over-year, totalling 342 units, according to the Greater Moncton Realtors du Grand Moncton. The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI), which monitors price trends at a better rate than average or median gauges, slipped 1.1 per cent to $330,400.

Sault Ste. Marie

The number of homes sold in June fell more than 24 percent year-over-year, with 175 units exchanging hands. The benchmark price edged up 0.1 per cent to $298,000. But the average price for homes sold in June surged at an annualized pace of nine percent to an all-time high of $348,889, Sault Ste. Marie Real Estate Board data confirmed.

North Bay

The North Bay and Area REALTORS® Association reported that home sales declined 15.4 per cent year-over-year in June, as 126 units were sold. The HPI slumped close to seven percent to $408,900. The average price of homes sold in June also declined more than nine per cent to $437,859.

Fredericton

The Fredericton real estate market witnessed a 7.7 per cent drop in residential property sales in June, according to the Real Estate Board of the Fredericton Area Inc. The benchmark home prices slipped more than five percent to $288,400, while the average price of homes sold year-over-year in June advanced close to nine percent to $336,481.

Saint John

In June, the Saint John real estate market suffered a 30.9 per cent year-over-year collapse in residential property sales. Despite the sharp drop in sales activity, the Saint John Real Estate Board found that the average price of homes sold in June increased by about seven percent to $315,500. The benchmark price slipped just three percent to $291,400.

Halifax

Sales activity slowed in the Halifax real estate market in June, with residential property sales tumbling ten percent to 628 units. However, average home prices surged by 7.2 per cent year-over-year to $581,055, according to the Nova Scotia Association of REALTORS®.

Windsor

The Windsor housing market saw a 5.4 per cent decrease in home sales, totalling 596 units in June. The HPI plummeted nearly 12 per cent to $587,300, while the average price fell more than four percent to $573,929, data from the Windsor-Essex County Association of REALTORS® discovered.

Regina

According to the Saskatchewan REALTORS® Association, residential property sales in Regina slumped eight per cent year-over-year, totalling 418 sales in May. The benchmark price for a home sold in the Regina real estate market was roughly unchanged at $316,100.

Edmonton

The Greater Edmonton Area real estate market saw a 6.8 per cent decrease in sales, totalling 2,719 in May, the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton reported. The average residential sales price was $420,507. This was down 1.5 per cent from the same time a year ago but up nearly three per cent on a month-over-month basis.

Sudbury

According to the Sudbury Real Estate Board, residential property sales fell 6.2 per cent year-over-year in June. The benchmark sales price dipped 0.6 per cent to $456,000. But the average price for homes sold in the Sudbury real estate market advanced nearly seven per cent to $492,410.

The Opportunities Are Endless

Canada is a big country. It is more than just Toronto and Vancouver. Whether in the middle of Alberta or on the coastline of Atlantic Canada, the scenery, the people, the food, the culture, and everything in between are just impeccable. Interprovincial migration remains a thing even in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. The Canadian real estate market is yours to discover, and there are lots to explore throughout this great country.