New home prices edge up slightly in July, first annual increase in 15 months: StatCan

The cost of a new home in Canada was up 0.1 per cent in July compared to a year earlier — the first annual increase since March 2023, according to Statistics Canada.

According to the New House Price Index (NHPI), which measures builders’ selling prices for new residential houses, prices also edged up 0.2 per cent in July compared to the month before.

The month-over-month increase was especially pronounced in Alberta, where prices jumped 0.8 per cent in a month. Over the past year, the price of a new home in Alberta has risen 3.9 per cent, far outpacing every other province.

New home prices have slowly risen back to where they were in summer 2023, though prices are still 0.9 per cent below their high mark in August 2022.

New homes in British Columbia were 0.3 per cent more expensive in July compared to June.

Alberta continues to see new home prices increase, in Calgary especially, where they have shot up 5.2 per cent in the past year.

Saskatchewan saw a monthly increase of 0.4 per cent, which is also the amount prices have grown over the past year. Prices in Regina are still lower than they were a year ago.

Quebec also saw slight positive price movement, though the Sherbrooke region has seen a 1.2 per cent drop in the past year.

Ontario was flat month-over-month, but is down 1.3 per cent overall year-over-year. The Ottawa-Gatineau and Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo regions lead the way in losses, down 4.1 and 2.7 per cent, respectively.