December Housing Data Ended 2022 On A Weak Note

Sellers remained on the sidelines. The number of newly listed homes dropped 6.4% month-over-month in December, led by British Columbia and Quebec declines. It was among the lowest December new supply levels on record.

With new listings down by quite a bit more than sales on a month-over-month basis, the sales-to-new listings ratio tightened to 54.4% compared to 50.2% posted in November. The long-term average for this measure is 55.1%.

There were 4.2 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of December 2022. This is close to where this measure was in the months leading up to the initial COVID-19 lockdowns and still nearly a full month below its long-term average.

Canadian home prices fell by the most on record in 2022 as rapidly rising interest rates forced a market adjustment that may not yet be over. The country’s benchmark home price fell 1.6% in December to C$730,600, bringing the total decrease since March to 16.4%. Last year also saw the most significant price decline for a calendar year since records began, with a 7.5% drop overall.

The Aggregate Composite MLS® HPI, which adjusts for the type of property sold, now sits about 13% below its peak level. Looking across the country, prices are down more than they are nationally in Ontario and parts of B.C. and down by less elsewhere. While prices have softened to some degree almost everywhere, Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon, and St. John’s stand out as markets where home prices are barely off their peaks at all.

The non-seasonally adjusted Aggregate Composite MLS® HPI was 7.5% below its December 2021 reading.