New-home price drop moderates
May 12, 2009
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OTTAWA–Canadian new-home prices fell for a sixth-straight month in March.
Prices declined 0.5 per cent from February, following a 0.7 per cent drop over January.
Prices in February were down 2.4 per cent from a year earlier, Statistics Canada said yesterday. The year-over-year decline was the largest since May 1996.
Prices fell 1.2 per cent each in Calgary and Edmonton, followed by Vancouver (down 1.1 per cent) and Victoria (down 0.9 per cent). Prices in Toronto fell 0.3 per cent.
Declines in Calgary and Edmonton were attributed to lower material and labour costs and lower lot prices from developers. In Vancouver and Victoria, builders reported lower prices due to competition and slow market conditions.
Prices also declined in St. Catharines-Niagara (by 0.9 per cent), Saskatoon (0.7), Charlottetown (0.4) and Hamilton (0.2).
In St. John's, Nfld., new housing prices increased by 0.4 per cent compared with February, followed by Montreal (up 0.3 per cent) and Quebec (up 0.1 per cent).
From the Star's wire services
Toronto Star