[URBAN NOTE] "Is a housing price correction coming in Toronto and Vancouver?"

[rfmcdonald]

MacLean's shares this Canadian Press article suggesting that real estate prices in Vancouver and Toronto might be set for a correction.

Surging sales in the piping hot real estate markets of Toronto and Vancouver last month prompted one of Canada’s big banks to express concerns Tuesday that the cities may be at risk of a home price correction.

The Canadian Real Estate Association reported Tuesday that sales of existing homes rose by eight per cent in January compared to a year ago, while the national average home price soared 17 per cent.

But it was the sales figures for Vancouver and Toronto that drew considerable notice from economists.

The average sale price in greater Vancouver rose 32.3 per cent year-over-year to nearly $1.1 million, while in greater Toronto it climbed 14.2 per cent to $631,092.

[. . .]

The price gains in Vancouver and Toronto fuelled a rise in Canada’s national average home price in January to $470,297, CREA said.

When excluding Ontario and British Columbia, however, the average sale price actually edged lower by 0.3 per cent from a year ago to $286,911.