Real-estate prices continued to be hot in Canada over the winter.
Figures released this morning by Statistics Canada showed that its new housing price index rose 0.2% in March, following an identical increase in February. This makes 12 consecutive hikes for the index, largely driven by higher new housing prices in Ontario and British Columbia.
Of the metropolitan areas covered by the index, the top contributors to the national increase in March were the combined region of Toronto and Oshawa and Vancouver, each of which saw a 0.4% gain. Builders in both regions cited market conditions as the main reason for the advance.
London, Ontario saw the largest monthly price gain in March at 0.8%. Builders reported higher material and labour costs as the primary reason for the increase—the largest since March 2010. New housing prices have risen in London for the past three months.
Other significant gains were observed in Windsor and Winnipeg, each hiking 0.3%. The agency says builders in Windsor reported higher material costs as the main reason for the rise. In Winnipeg, the price advance was mainly due to building code changes to improve the energy efficiency of new homes.
Prices were unchanged in 11 of 21 metropolitan areas surveyed. In Regina, higher material costs and increases due to market conditions were offset by lower negotiated selling prices. In Victoria, price gains due to current market conditions were also offset by lower negotiated selling prices.
