Statistics
Canada informed on Thursday the New Housing Price Index (NHPI) edged up 0.1 per
cent m-o-m in February, following a 0.1 per cent slip m-o-m in the previous month. This was the first monthly decrease
in new housing prices since
August 2023 (+0.1 per cent m-o-m).
Economists had forecast
the NHPI to be flat m-o-m in February.
According to
the report, 19 out of the 27 census metropolitan areas (CMAs) surveyed recorded
flat m-o-m performance in new home prices last month, while 6 CMAs registered advances,
and the remaining 2 posted declines.
Montréal (+0.4 per
cent m-o-m) and Edmonton (+0.3 per cent m-o-m) logged the largest gains in new
home prices last month. Meanwhile, Winnipeg (-0.9 per cent m-o-m) registered
the biggest drop in new home prices in February, with builders linking the
decrease to lower construction costs.
In y-o-y terms, the NHPI decreased 0.4 per cent
in February, following a 0.7
per cent fall in the previous month. This marked the 11th straight annual decline
in the NHPI.