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The Canadian Real Estate Association says the number of residential properties changing hands in October was lower than a year ago as prices also fell.
There were 42,068 homes sold nationwide last month, down 4.3 percent from October 2024.
But home sales rose 0.9 percent month on month, the sixth such increase in the past seven months.
“After a brief pause in September, Canadian home sales rose again in October, reverting to the trend that has been in place since April,” CREA senior economist Sean Cathcart said in a press release.
“With interest rates now almost in stimulative territory, housing markets are expected to continue to become more active in 2026, although this is likely to be tempered by ongoing economic uncertainty.”
The increase in activity from the previous month was driven by rising sales in British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec, while sales fell in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, TD economist Rishi Sondhi said.
He said the “recovery narrative” that dominates housing discourse in Canada remains unchanged.
“However, sales levels are still relatively low, making it difficult for us to call the recovery sustainable,” Sondhi said in a note.
“Moving forward, we see sales continuing to grow, supported by pent-up demand as well as some improvement in labor markets next year.”
Prices are also a little lower
The actual median sales price of homes sold in October was $690,195, down 1.1% from a year ago.
CREA's own house price index, which aims to reflect sales of typical homes, rose 0.2 percent between September and October 2025, but was down three percent from the same period last year.
“This improving demand situation should keep Canadian average house price growth in positive territory, underpinned by a tight balance of supply and demand across much of the country,” Sondhi said.
“In contrast, market balance favors buyers in British Columbia and Ontario, which should moderate price increases in those markets over the next few months.”
The association said new listings were down 1.4% from the previous month.
At the end of October, there were 189,000 properties for sale across Canada, up 7.2 per cent from a year earlier.
