OTTAWA: Canadian new home prices rose less than expected in December amid a pause in price growth in the hot markets of Toronto and Vancouver, though home values continued to rise in several regions in Ontario, Statistics Canada data showed on Thursday. The 0.1 per cent gain was short of analysts’ expectations for an increase of 0.2 per cent. National prices have risen steadily on a month-over-month basis for nearly two years. The index excludes apartments and condominiums, which account for about one-third of new housing.
Toronto, now one of the most expensive housing markets in the country, was unchanged after rising 22 months in a row. Prices in Vancouver were also flat. Housing activity in the province of British Columbia began to cool last year, even before the provincial government implemented a tax on foreign homebuyers in Vancouver. December’s overall price increase was driven by cities in Ontario that have seen their housing markets boosted by soaring Toronto prices, including Hamilton and Kitchener, where prices climbed 0.3 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively.
