Canadian existing-home sales fell 2.4 percent for July and new listings jumped, the nation’s realty association said, indicating the country’s housing market may be cooling.
Sales in 25 major markets dropped to a seasonally adjusted 27,231 homes in July from 28,052 in June, the Canadian Real Estate Association said in a statement. New listings rose 1.9 percent during the month, to 47,557 units.
The new listings and lower sales should help slow price growth, the association said. Rising home prices have helped push the country’s annual inflation rate above the Bank of Canada’s 2 percent target every month since November.
Central bankers paused last month after raising the benchmark lending rate seven times, to 4.25 percent, and indicated they may not need to raise rates again this year.
“Market conditions will become increasingly balanced as sales activity softens and active listings continue to rise,” Gregory Klump, the real estate association’s chief economist, said in the statement. “They will help to keep price gains in check in the coming months.”
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The average resale price rose 10.1 percent from a year earlier compared with a 12 percent annual increase in June.
Homes in Calgary, the country’s second-most expensive market, jumped 46 percent in July from a year earlier.