COVID-19 has impacted so many Canadian industries including the real estate market. The average house price in Canada has dropped by 10% during the pandemic. However, some parts of the country have actually seen increases. Zoocasa, a full-service brokerage, shared an analysis of what Canada's real estate market has been going through during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to before it. Average home prices from February and April were compared in 20 real estate markets across the country using data from the Canadian Real Estate Association. With Canada as a whole, that average dropped 10% between those two months from $539,724 in February to $488,203 in April. That higher average comes before any strict public health measures were put into place by the federal or provincial governments. Of the 20 real estate markets looked at by Zoocasa, 13 have seen a decrease in prices. Greater Toronto is the only region to have its average home price drop by more than $50,000. That average was $821,392 in April, an $88,898 change from February. Ottawa, Hamilton-Burlington, the Niagara region, Windsor-Essex and Calgary have seen decreases between $25,000 and $50,000. After those markets, London/St. Thomas, Saint John, greater Montreal, Victoria, Regina, Kitchener-Waterloo and the Fraser Valley have gone through smaller decreases. View this post on Instagram Social distancing views 😎☀️ Enjoy the beautiful weather Toronto! #torontosummer #cntower #summertime #summertimevibes #toronto #torontohomes #torontohouses #socialdistancing #socialdistance #newnormal #balconyviews #balconylife #torontobuilders #torontocontractor #clouds #torontolandscape #staysafe #staysafestayhome A post shared by H .Burke Custom Builders Ltd (@burkecustombuilders) on May 23, 2020 at 8:31am PDT With a global pandemic going on, you might not think that house prices would be on the rise. However, in seven real estate markets across Canada, that has been the case. Edmonton, Halifax-Dartmouth, greater Quebec City, greater Gatineau, Winnipeg and greater Vancouver have seen price increases of up to $25,000. Saskatoon has gone through the greatest increase of all the real estate markets. In April, the average home price was $327,539, which is a $29,815 increase from what it was in February. View this post on Instagram Discover More ~ MTL 🇨🇦 #montreal #squaresaintlouis #montrealhouses #montrealstreetart #francaisaucanada #montreallove A post shared by Jessica (@jessica__ghdi) on May 16, 2020 at 4:25pm PDT Even with a decrease because of COVID-19, Toronto and the surrounding regions still have one of the highest average home prices in the country. With all of the 20 real estate markets combined, Canada has seen a $51,521 decline in prices between February and April. According to Zoocasa, both physical distancing measures that reduced in-person visits and economic uncertainty have led to these changes.
