The average home price of $1.254 million, though down from March, was up 15 per cent from last year, the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board said Wednesday.
Sales also declined in April, falling 27 per cent from the month before and 41 per cent from last year. “Based on the trends observed in the April housing market, it certainly appears that the Bank of Canada is achieving its goal of slowing consumer spending as it fights high inflation,” said TRREB president Kevin Crigger in a press release. “Moving forward, it will be interesting to see the balance the Bank of Canada strikes between combatting inflation versus stunting economic growth and related government revenues as we continue to recover from and pay for pandemic-related programs.
In its fight against decades-high inflation the Bank of Canada has so far raised its key rate 75 basis points to one per cent. These rate increases have rippled throughout the mortgage market, raising the cost of borrowing. However, the tight supply of homes is still expected to put some upward pressure on prices compared to last year.
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