The price of a home increased 9.7% in Canada in Q4 2020

According to the Royal LePage House Price Survey, the aggregate¹ price of a home in Canada increased 9.7 per cent year-over-year to $708,842 in the fourth quarter of 2020, as strong seller’s market conditions continued to shape Canada’s real estate market through the end of the year. 

The Royal LePage National House Price Composite is compiled from proprietary property data, nationally and in 62 of the nation’s largest real estate markets. When broken out by housing type, the median price of a standard two-storey home rose 11.2 per cent year-over-year to $840,628, while the median price of a bungalow increased 10.0 per cent to $592,899, and the median price of a condominium increased 3.9 per cent to $509,239. 

“In April 2020, we issued our pandemic period forecast for Canadian real estate, the principle prediction being that unexpectedly soft spring home prices, historically low interest rates, and years of pent-up demand would trigger a sharp recovery of sales volumes and rising property prices in the second half of the year,” said Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage. “As we close the books on the strangest year in my long career, ‘recovery’ proved to be an understatement. Looking at fourth quarter results we can state without hyperbole that the health crisis triggered a real estate boom.

“High levels of unresolved housing demand and low inventory levels will likely characterize the 2021 spring market, putting further upward pressure on housing values, particularly in the detached and larger townhome segments, as families with access to extremely low borrowing costs trade traditionally desirable urban locations for more personal space,” he continued. 

While many Canadians have been seeking larger homes outside of urban centres, demand for properties in Canada’s largest urban centres have remained high. Ottawa’s aggregate price increased 14.9 per cent year-over-year to $568,608 during the fourth quarter, and the greater regions of Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver increased 12.4 per cent, 10.4 per cent and 7.2 per cent to $487,380, $936,510 and $1,155,346, respectively. 

Soper added that the surge in sales that characterized the second half of the year is a sign that Canadians feel confident buying and selling properties during the pandemic. Across the country, Canadians are leveraging today’s advanced technologies and the expertise of real estate professionals to safely engage in the homebuying process. 

In December 2020, Royal LePage issued its 2021 forecast² stating that the national aggregate price of a home is expected to increase 5.5 per cent year-over-year. 

_{¹  Royal LePage’s aggregate home price is based on a weighted model using median prices and includes all housing types.}

_{² View the Royal LePage 2021 Market Survey Forecast: rlp.ca/2021-forecast}