According to Statistics Canada, new house prices in Canada edged up 0.1 percent in June, largely due to rising construction costs across the country. The cost of softwood lumber, which is widely used in residential construction, has been on the rise. According to the Industrial Product Price Index, the price of softwood lumber (except tongue and groove and other edge worked lumber) rose 34.3 percent year over year in June.
Among the 11 surveyed census metropolitan areas (CMAs) reporting growth in June, the largest increases were in Montréal (+1.0 percent) and Ottawa (+0.7 percent). Builders in both markets linked the gains to rising construction and land development costs. Other notable rises occurred in St. Catharines–Niagara (+0.5 percent) and Greater Sudbury (+0.4 percent).
In the west, prices for new homes were up in Calgary (+0.3 percent), Edmonton (+0.2 percent) and Vancouver (+0.2 percent). The increase in Vancouver follows five months of flat prices.
Six CMAs reported declines in June, with Oshawa (-0.3 percent) registering the largest decrease. New home prices were unchanged in Toronto in June. Prices in this market have been flat or declining since November 2017.
New house prices rose 0.8 percent year-over-year in June. The largest 12-month gains were in Ottawa (+5.0 percent) and London (+4.8 percent). Among the four CMAs reporting declines, Toronto (-1.3 percent) and Regina (-1.2 percent) recorded the largest 12-month decreases.