The average price of a Canadian resale home has risen by more than 15 per cent in the year up to October, the Canadian Real Estate Association said Monday.
The group that represents more than 130,000 real estate agents across Canada said that last month was the busiest October ever for home sales, continuing a trend that started in May after COVID-19 lockdowns in March and April put the market into a deep freeze.
While sales plummeted in the early days of the pandemic, they have been on fire ever since. Some 56,186 homes changed hands during the month, bringing the total tally of 2020 as a whole to 461,818. That’s the second-busiest 10-month stretch ever.
Sales continued to boom compared to normal levels, and prices seem to be doing the same thing.
The average price of a resale home sold on CREA’s MLS system went for $607,250. That’s up by 15.2 per cent compared to last October. Six provinces saw double digit gains and one — Manitoba — missed it by a hair, at 9.6 per cent
CREA warns that the average selling price can be misleading, since it tends to be skewed higher by sales of expensive houses in places like Toronto and Vancouver, so it puts out another number — known as the Multiple Listing Service House Price Index, or MLS HPI, that adjusts for market size and type of home.
The MLS HPI rose by 10.9 per cent in the year up to October. That’s the fastest annual increase in more than three years, dating back to July 2017, before the government implemented stress-test rules aimed at slowing down the market.
Homebuyer preferences
Continuing a trend that’s been observed since the start of the pandemic, homebuyers are showing a preference for two things: more space and bigger homes just outside big cities.
“The real price strength is in markets just outside (call it one-to-two hours) of the biggest urban centres,” BMO economist Robert Kavcic said in a research note.
A number of markets scattered across southwestern Ontario are seeing annual gains of more than 20 per cent right now, he said.
“On the flip side, the big cities, while still seeing price growth, are losing ground on a relative basis. For example, Vancouver is now underperforming the Okanagan Valley; and Toronto is now significantly underperforming surrounding markets like Georgian Bay, Barrie and London/St. Thomas.”
TD Bank economist Rishi Sondhi said that while still well up over the longer term, the volume of sales slowed by 0.7 per cent in October compared to the previous month, which could be a sign that the pent-up demand caused by the pandemic is dissipating.
“Sales are likely still well above fundamentally-supported levels in October [and] in our view, they can only remain that way for so long,” Sondhi said. “As such, we look for activity to continue to cool in coming months. And the possibility of more widespread lockdowns could add further downward pressure to sales moving forward.”
TORONTO – Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported net income of US$357 million for its third quarter, down from US$364 million in the same quarter last year.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 79 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with 79 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, totalled US$2.29 billion, up from US$1.84 billion in the same quarter last year.
Consolidated comparable sales were up 0.3 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Restaurant Brands says it earned 93 cents US per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 90 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Fortis Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $420 million, up from $394 million in the same quarter last year.
The electric and gas utility says the profit amounted to 85 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 81 cents per share a year earlier.
Fortis says the increase was driven by rate base growth across its utilities, and strong earnings in Arizona largely reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power.
Revenue in the quarter totalled $2.77 billion, up from $2.72 billion in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Fortis says it earned 85 cents per share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 84 cents per share in the third quarter of 2023.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 82 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
TORONTO – Thomson Reuters reported its third-quarter profit fell compared with a year ago as its revenue rose eight per cent.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says it earned US$301 million or 67 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30. The result compared with a profit of US$367 million or 80 cents US per diluted share in the same quarter a year earlier.
Revenue for the quarter totalled US$1.72 billion, up from US$1.59 billion a year earlier.
In its outlook, Thomson Reuters says it now expects organic revenue growth of 7.0 per cent for its full year, up from earlier expectations for growth of 6.5 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Thomson Reuters says it earned 80 cents US per share in its latest quarter, down from an adjusted profit of 82 cents US per share in the same quarter last year.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 76 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
