Home Sales in Canada Rose 26% in July 2020

Canadian home sales rose 26% in July from June, posting the highest monthly level ever recorded, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) said on Monday, as pent-up demand following lockdowns continued to fuel the market. It was the third straight month of sharply higher sales after a record decline in April, when businesses were closed to help contain the coronavirus pandemic. Among Canada's largest markets, sales rose 49.5% in the Greater Toronto Area and were up 43.9% in Greater Vancouver, the industry group said. Actual sales, not seasonally adjusted, rose 30.5% from a year earlier, while the group's Home Price Index was up 7.4% from July last year. With the rebound in sales activity outpacing the recovery in new supply, the national sales-to-new listings ratio rose to one of the highest levels on record at 73.9% from 63.1% in June, CREA said.