The Canadian Real Estate Association says it recorded the most home sales for August in four years as the number of residential properties that changed hands rose 1.9 per cent compared with a year ago.
There were 40,257 home sales across the country last month, up from 39,522 in August 2024.
Home sales also rose 1.1 per cent on a month-over-month basis, marking the fifth straight monthly increase. Transactions have risen a cumulative 12.5 per cent since March.
Unlike in recent months when gains were led overwhelmingly by the Greater Toronto Area, sales in that region were down slightly month-over-month in August. But the association said this was more than offset by higher sales in Montreal, Greater Vancouver and Ottawa.
CREA senior economist Shaun Cathcart says the upward trend in activity could accelerate this fall as the season usually brings a surge of new supply.
“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,” he said in a media release.
“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.”
The central bank is set to announce its latest interest rate decision on Wednesday. Financial markets expect the Bank of Canada to cut its policy rate by a quarter point to 2.5 per cent, ending a streak of three consecutive holds.
‘Very balanced’ housing market, says economist
CREA said new listings were up 2.6 per cent month-over-month and there were 195,453 properties listed for sale across Canada at the end of August, up 8.8 per cent from a year earlier.
The actual national average sale price of a home sold in August was $664,078, up 1.8 per cent from a year ago.
CREA’s own home price index, which aims to represent the sale of typical homes, ticked 0.1 per cent lower between July and August 2025.
“Canada’s housing market remained very balanced overall in August, with significant regional and segment variation persisting,” wrote Robert Kavcic, senior economist at BMO, in an email to clients.
“At the national level, sales have steadily climbed back toward longer-term norms, inventory is elevated but not overly saturating the market and prices are effectively flat.”
