Have you been trying to buy a house for a while? Well your time may be now, as Canadian housing prices continue to plummet.
Related: 25% of Canadian millennials don’t think they’ll ever be homeowners: survey.
With increasing interest rates from the Bank of Canada and the possibility of a looming recession, it seems like house prices are on a downward plunge across the country. According to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), the average price of a home in Canada came to $637,673 in August 2022, which is 3.9 per cent lower than August 2021.
These housing market dips haven’t been standard across the country, though. While some regions have experienced quite a steep drop, others have only experienced some slight decreases.
Here’s where home prices have dipped the most in Canada.
Ontario
In August 2022, the average home price was $904,800, which clocks in at a whopping 15.9 per cent less than the housing peak back in February. The Greater Toronto Area experienced a pretty similar dip, with a 15.2 per cent decrease in the same period of time.
While towns like Bancroft, Sault Ste. Marie and Windsor-Essex actually saw house prices increase by 10 to 14 per cent during this time, the biggest housing market dips took place in cities that were a two-hour drive from Toronto. Housing prices in Cambridge dropped 24.5 per cent and Oakville, London and Kitchener-Waterloo each saw their housing prices decrease by 23 per cent.
Related: Want to buy a home in Toronto or Vancouver? You need to make more than $220K: new data.
British Columbia
While Ontario experienced significant dips, BC also had quite the housing price plummet. In August 2022, the average house price was $995,500, which was 5 per cent lower than it was in February. The steepest housing dips took place in the Chilliwack area, where house prices fell by 16.9 per cent.
On Vancouver Island, house prices rose 6.9 per cent, but in Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley region they fell by 4.6 per cent and 11.2 per cent respectively.
See also: What is ‘payment shock’ — and why are Canadians so vulnerable to it right now?
Quebec
Unlike Ontario and BC, Quebec only saw home prices drop starting in May. In August 2022, home prices in Quebec were $489,900, which was 2.5 per cent lower than it was in May. Quebec City’s house prices only dropped by 1.4 per cent, but Montreal was pretty close to the province average, dropping 2.4 per cent.
See also: The cutest spots in Montreal for a first date.
Prairies
Manitoba was the only province in the Prairies to see home prices decline. Specifically, Winnipeg home prices dropped by 4.5 per cent over six months.
Alberta actually saw house prices increase by 2.5 per cent in the last six months, reaching an average of $469,900. On the bright side, the CREA says home prices “appear to have peaked” in Alberta. In Calgary, specifically, house prices increased by a shocking 10.6 per cent.
Saskatchewan has not yet reached their housing market peak, according to CREA. They’re up 5.3 per cent in the province and are “still rising slightly.”
Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada saw the biggest housing price increases between February 2022 and August 2022. Prince Edward Island saw the biggest hike in Canada, with house prices rising by a jaw-dropping 13.1 per cent.
Nova Scotia came close, with house prices rising 10.3 per cent to reach $395,300. This price is still lower than when the market peaked in May, which clocked in at $417,500.
New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador had their prices rise by 6.5 per cent and 7.9 per cent respectively.
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