November marked the 15th straight month that the 12-month rate of growth in new housing prices held steady in Canada, according to the New Housing Price Index released from Statistics Canada Thursday.
Overall, prices rose 0.5 per cent between October and November of last year, resulting in a New Housing Price Index of 156.5.
Contractors' selling prices rose 6.1 per cent between November 2006 and November 2007, unchanged from the year-over-year increase in October.
Saskatchewan continues to lead the pack in regional year-over-year inflation, reporting a new housing price increase of 47.9 per cent for November. This monthly increase showed no change from October.
In Regina, the higher cost of materials and labour drove new housing prices up by 0.9 per cent from October. The city's year-over-year increase was 28.2 per cent, down slightly from its October rise of 29.5 per cent.
Prices in Calgary were 5 per cent higher in November 2007 compared to November 2006, falling from the 6.2 per cent increase in October.
November marked the city's second straight month of decline in new housing prices as the cost of owning a new home fell by 0.1 per cent. The decline comes as some Calgary builders reduced prices to reflect current market conditions in the city.
In Edmonton, prices were 21 per cent higher than in November 2006, down from the high of 42.8 per cent in November 2006. However, monthly prices in the city were unchanged from October.
Winnipeg's year-over-year rise was unchanged at 15.4 per cent. The city experienced moderate gains in November of last year with prices rising 0.5 per cent from October.
On the West Coast, prices continued to rise. The 12-month increase for Vancouver was 6.4 per cent, up from 6.2 per cent in October. Strong market conditions for sellers in the Lower Mainland area helped to boost prices in the city by 0.2 per cent from October.
In Victoria, contractors' selling prices increased 1.2 per cent from November 2006, representing the largest price hike since August 2006. Prices in the city were 0.5 per cent higher in November compared with October.
In Atlantic Canada, Halifax saw an increase of 10.4 per cent in year-over-year prices and an increase of 3.5 per cent from October. Despite a strong demand for new homes in the St. John's area, prices remained unchanged on a 12-month basis for the city.
Montreal's 12-month growth rate slowed to 4.1 per cent. The report speculated declines were triggered by a competitive market that was offset by an increase in construction costs. Contractors' selling process remained unchanged in Montreal from October.
Toronto's red-hot real estate market recorded only a moderate increase for new housing prices. November's prices rose 0.9 per cent from October and 3.4 per cent from the year before. Hamilton also recorded a year-over-year increase of 3.0 per cent, while London's prices rose by 3.9 per cent.
Elsewhere in Ontario, Windsor continues to be the only city in the country to record year-over-year deflation on new housing prices. The city reported a decline of 1.7 per cent from November 2006. Contractor's selling prices remained unchanged in Windsor from October.
