Unlike in recent months, when gains were led overwhelmingly by the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), sales in the GTA were down slightly in August, but this was more than offset by higher sales in Montreal, Greater Vancouver and Ottawa, it said.
Shaun Cathcart
“Activity has continued to gradually pick up steam over the last five months, but the experience from a year ago suggests that trend could accelerate this fall,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s Senior Economist. “Part of what drives sales at different points in the year is the availability of a lot of fresh property listings for buyers to buy. For the fall market, that always happens right at the beginning of September, and this year was no exception. If last year is any kind of guide, then there is the potential that sales could really pick up in the next month or so depending on how many buyers are drawn off the sidelines, particularly if we see a September rate cut by the Bank of Canada.”
August Highlights:
- National home sales were up 1.1% month-over-month.
- Actual (not seasonally adjusted) monthly activity came in 1.9% above August 2024.
- The number of newly listed properties climbed 2.6% on a month-over-month basis.
- The MLS Home Price Index (HPI) was little changed (-0.1%) month-over-month and was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis.
- The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average sale price rose 1.8% on a year-over-year basis.
Valérie Paquin
There were 4.4 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of August 2025, the lowest level since January. The long-term average for this measure of market balance is five months of inventory. Based on one standard deviation above and below that long-term average, a seller’s market would be below 3.6 months and a buyer’s market would be above 6.4 months, said CREA
The National Composite MLS Home Price Index (HPI) was again almost unchanged (-0.1%) between July and August 2025. Following declines in the first quarter of the year, the national benchmark price has been mostly stable since April. The non-seasonally adjusted National Composite MLS HPI was down 3.4% compared to August 2024. Based on the extent to which prices fell off beginning in the fall of 2024, look for year-over-year declines to continue to shrink in the months ahead. The non-seasonally adjusted national average home price was $664,078 in August 2025, up 1.8% from August 2024, added CREA.
Mario Toneguzzi
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