The house price for Ontario is forecast to increase slightly in 2024, after declining by six percent in 2023. From roughly 872,312 Canadian dollars, the average house price in Canada's second most expensive province for housing is expected to rise to 876,410 Canadian dollars in 2024. After British Columbia, Ontario is Canada's most expensive province for housing. Ontario Ontario is the most populated province in Canada, located on the eastern-central side of the country. It is an English speaking province. To the south, it borders American states Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. Its provincial capital and largest city is Toronto. It is also home to Canada’s national capital, Ottawa. Furthermore, a large part of Ontario’s economy comes from manufacturing, as it is the leading manufacturing province in Canada. The population of Ontario has been steadily increasing since 2000. The population in 2018 was an estimated 14.3 million people. The median total family income in 2021 came to 100,000 Canadian dollars. Ontario housing market The number of housing units sold in Ontario is projected to rise until 2024. Additionally, the average home prices in Ontario have significantly increased since 2007.

The average Canadian house price declined slightly in 2023, after four years of consecutive growth. The average house price stood at 678,282 Canadian dollars in 2023 and was forecast to reach 746,379 Canadian dollars by 2026. Home sales on the rise The number of housing units sold is also set to increase over the two-year period. From 443,511 units sold, the annual number of home sales in the country is expected to rise to 453,704 in 2025. British Columbia and Ontario have traditionally been housing markets with prices above the Canadian average, and both are set to witness an increase in sales in 2025. How did Canadians feel about the future development of house prices? When it comes to consumer confidence in the performance of the real estate market in the next six months, Canadian consumers in 2024 mostly expected that the market would go up. A slightly lower share of the respondents believed real estate prices would remain the same.

The average resale house price in Canada was forecast to reach nearly 836,000 Canadian dollars in 2026, according to a January forecast. In 2024, house prices increased after falling for the first time since 2019. One of the reasons for the price correction was the notable drop in transaction activity. Housing transactions picked up in 2024 and are expected to continue to grow until 2026. British Columbia, which is the most expensive province for housing, is projected to see the average house price reach 1.2 million Canadian dollars in 2026. Affordability in Vancouver Vancouver is the most populous city in British Columbia and is also infamously expensive for housing. In 2023, the city topped the ranking for least affordable housing market in Canada, with the average homeownership cost outweighing the average household income. There are a multitude of reasons for this, but most residents believe that foreigners investing in the market cause the high housing prices. Victoria housing market The capital of British Columbia is Victoria, where housing prices are also very high. The price of a single family home in Victoria's most expensive suburb, Oak Bay was 1.9 million Canadian dollars in 2024.

Housing Index in Canada increased to 124.50 points in February from 124.40 points in January of 2025. This dataset provides - Canada New Housing Price Index - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The average price for a house in Quebec stood at approximately 487,000 Canadian dollars in 2023 and was set to increase slightly in the next two years. In 2025, the average price is forecast to reach 512,000 Canadian dollars. Meanwhile, the national average house price was forecast to pick up in 2025. Compared to other provinces, Quebec was the third-most expensive province to buy housing in Canada, after British Columbia and Ontario. Quebec Located on the eastern side of Canada, Quebec had an estimated population of almost nine million people in 2022. It is the second most populated province in Canada, and the second-largest by land size, as it is three times the size of Texas. The largest city in Quebec is Montreal, which is close to the Vermont border in the United States. The median total family income in Quebec has been steadily rising since 2000. Housing Prices in Canada Housing prices in Canada vary province to province. The most expensive average house price was in British Columbia in 2022. Vancouver, the most populated city in British Columbia, is known for its high-priced real estate market. However, housing prices all over Canada have increased in the past couple of years.

The average house price in the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island stood at 382,659 Canadian dollars in 2023 and was expected to decline in the next two years. By 2025, the average house price is forecast to reach 375,867 Canadian dollars. Compared to other provinces in Canada, Prince Edward Island stood below the national average in terms of house prices. Nevertheless, housing was still significantly more expensive than in Newfoundland and New Brunswick. House prices in Canada Prince Edward Island is one of the most affordable Canadian provinces for buying a house, with prices almost half below the national median in 2023. The national figure is somewhat skewed however by the extremely high cost of housing in British Colombia, and, to a lesser extent, Ontario. A better measure of affordability is the provincial house-price-to-income ratio, which shows Prince Edward Island to be the second most affordable province. Global comparison Canada is one of the most expensive countries in the OECD in terms of house-price-to-income ratio. In 2022, Canada scored higher than the United States, the UK, and Korea. That means that the cost of housing has increased at a much higher rate than the average income in the country.

The average house price in Nova Scotia in 2024 stood at approximately 447,800 Canadian dollars. In the next year, house prices are forecast to further increase by about five percent. Compared to other provinces, Nova Scotia ranked below the national average in terms of house prices. However, the average price of a house in Nova Scotia was twice lower than in Ontario or British Columbia. Exploding population growth in recent yearsNova Scotia is the second-smallest province after Prince Edward Island, and had a population of just under one million in 2018. The population of this province was relatively steady between 2000 and 2015, but has taken off since then. This sudden growth may be a factor in the increasing house prices, as demand also increases due to the greater number of residents looking for homes. The future of housing affordability in Nova ScotiaHalifax, the provincial capital, had an affordable housing market as of 2018, with mortgage payments only constituting about 30 percent of average household incomes. The number of housing starts in the region has increased in the past few years, which also suggests an increase in demand. Only time will tell whether this will ensure a sufficient supply of homes for the region in response to its growing population.

After surging in 2021, sales activity in the Canadian housing market slowed down in the next two years. According to the forecast, the number of home sales in 2026 is expected to reach almost 556,660. The Canadian residential housing market is going through a period of change because the skyrocketing home prices are being tempered by various governmental interventions. One of the measures is such as a two-year ban on foreign purchases. Additionally, the government introduced a tax on vacant foreign-owned housing and a tax on assignment sales - resales of homes that have not been constructed or lived in before the time of the sale.

The average house price in Alberta, Canada in 2024 was approximately 494,097 Canadian dollars. By 2025, this figure is forecast to reach 534,861 Canadian dollars. The number of home sales in the province surged in 2021, and in 2025, the annual number of housing transactions is expected to exceed 85,000. Compared to other provinces, Alberta ranked below the national average, but housing was still more expensive than in New Brunswick and Newfoundland.

The house price ratio in Canada peaked in the second quarter of 2022, followed by three quarters of decline and a slight rebound in 2023. The ratio measures the development of housing affordability and is calculated by dividing nominal house price by nominal disposable income per head, with 2015 set as a base year when the index amounted to 100. Canada's index score in the third quarter of 2024 amounted to 136.8, which means that house price growth has outpaced income growth by almost 37 percent since 2015. Canadian home prices are fallingAfter several years of steady increase, Canadian house prices were forecast to fall slightly in 2023. This was also the case in British Columbia, which has consistently been the most expensive province for housing. This is likely because Vancouver, Canada's most expensive city, is located there. Canadian incomes on the riseIncomes in Canada have steadily risen since 2000 and show no signs of slowing down in the near future. This should improve housing affordability, as long as home price growth slows down.

The MSL composite price index measures the development of house prices in Canada since 2005. House prices rose dramatically in 2021, with the house price index spiking from 252 index points to 324 index points - an increase of 72 index points. In 2022, a correction followed, and the index fell to 299.4 index points, followed by a minor increase to 301.5 index points

In 2023, there were fewer new home construction starts in Canada than in the previous year. Construction starts peaked in 2021, when there were 271,200 housing units whose construction started that year. Despite the restrictions imposed in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic, the industry managed to continue operating, with increases in the number of housing starts in 2020 and 2021. How many homes are under development? In 2022, the number of housing units that were under construction in Canada was approximately 334,000 units. After a period of stagnation until 2016, the housing industry witnessed a significant surge in construction activity, with an annual growth rate of nearly 9.5 percent. Numerous factors are attributed to this rise, including the heightened demand for housing, an expanding economy that encouraged investment, and the response to the shortage of housing. How expensive are homes in Canada? In 2023, the average cost of a house in Canada was around 678,282 Canadian dollars. The average house price had fallen that year by 25,593 Canadian dollars compared in 2023 compared to the previous year. Another way to measure the trends in housing prices is the house price-to-income ratio. It measures the development of housing affordability and is calculated by dividing the nominal house price by the nominal disposable income per head. The house price-to-income ratio in Canada fell by 15.8 percentage points between the second quarter of 2022 and that same quarter in 2023, indicating that house values decreased in relation to earnings. This makes homeownership in Canada more challenging due to the decreasing affordability of dwellings.

Ambulatory healthcare was the type of building with the highest construction costs in Ontario (Canada) in 2023. The cost of that type of building ranged from 7,110 to 8,750 Canadian dollars per square meter. Townhouses with mid-end specifications were, along with warehouses, among the cheapest buildings to construct, even though the townhouse sale price in Canada was much higher in 2023 than in a decade earlier. On the other side of the residential spectrum, the construction cost of high-rise buildings with mid-end specifications could reach up to 5,370 Canadian dollars per square meter. The housing sector in Ontario The fast population growth in Toronto, the main city in Ontario, has put pressure on its housing market. From 2001 to 2022, the number of people living in Canada’s largest city increased by over 37 percent. During the past years, house prices in Ontario rose at a similarly fast pace. Combined, these elements signal a strong demand for homes in Toronto and Ontario as a whole. The construction sector has responded to this trend: In 2022, most housing starts in Canada took place in the province of Ontario. That same year, EllisDon Corporation, with headquarters in Mississauga (Ontario), was the second-largest contractor in Canada. One of its largest residential/mixed-use projects under development is the 489-539 King St. West Development, in Toronto. Construction cost in North America Building construction costs in Quebec, the second most populous province in Canada after Ontario, had a similar cost range: Ambulatory healthcare buildings were the most expensive, and warehouses were the cheapest to build. However, enclosed malls and higher education buildings were significantly more expensive in Quebec than in Ontario. Across the border, the cities with the highest residential construction costs in the U.S. were San Francisco for multi-family housing, and New York City for single-family housing. Meanwhile, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York had the highest hotel construction costs in the U.S.

The statistic shows the average inflation rate in Canada from 1987 to 2023, with projections up until 2029. The inflation rate is calculated using the price increase of a defined product basket. This product basket contains products and services, on which the average consumer spends money throughout the year. They include expenses for groceries, clothes, rent, power, telecommunications, recreational activities and raw materials (e.g. gas, oil), as well as federal fees and taxes. In 2022, the average inflation rate in Canada was approximately 6.8 percent compared to the previous year. For comparison, inflation in India amounted to 5.56 percent that same year.

Inflation in Canada

In general, the inflation rate in Canada follows a global trend of decreasing inflation rates since 2011, with the lowest slump expected to occur during 2015, but forecasts show an increase over the following few years. Additionally, Canada's inflation rate is in quite good shape compared to the rest of the world. While oil and gas prices have dropped in Canada much like they have around the world, food and housing prices in Canada have been increasing. This has helped to offset some of the impact of dropping oil and gas prices and the effect this has had on Canada´s inflation rate.

The annual consumer price index of food and non-alcoholic beverages in Canada has been steadily increasing over the last decade. The same is true for housing and other price indexes for the country. In general there is some confidence that the inflation rate will not stay this low for long, it is expected to return to a comfortable 2 percent by 2017 if estimates are correct.

Between 2022 and 2024, the construction price of residential and non-residential buildings in Canada has grown at the same pace. The price of both types of buildings was roughly six percent higher in the last quarter of 2024 than in 2023, which is the year when the index base was set at 100. Nevertheless, that only considers the cost of buildings in 15 selected metropolitan areas in Canada. Toronto was by far the metropolitan region with the highest construction costs in Canada.

What determines construction costs? The growth rate of the construction price of different types of buildings tends to follow similar trends to some extent. For example, price growth rates in Canada for most types of buildings were more moderate in 2023 than in previous years. However, those figures show a lot of disparity, with the cost of building a high rise apartment building growing much faster than that of other types of buildings. This might be because the construction costs depend on elements such as the location, materials, and complexity of the building, which tend to be quite different for each type of building.

Lumber building materials in Canada In 2023, Canada was the world’s second-largest exporter of wood building materials such as veneer sheets, parquet flooring, particleboard, laminated wood, and builders’ joinery and carpentry. Forestry, logging, and processing wood into ready-to-use materials are important industries in the Canadian economy. High price growth rates of building materials impact negatively the construction industry as their activities become more expensive. However, the forestry and logging industry benefited from the cost of lumber rising in 2020 and 2021. In the past years, the price of lumber, however, has fallen again.