MLS® resale prices may have seen record highs for the past five months, but the new home price index in the Vancouver Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) was 1.2 per cent lower in September than the same month in 2013, according to data released November 13 by Statistics Canada.
The Vancouver index figure was unchanged compared with August 2014, but the year-over-year drop was the third largest of all the CMAs surveyed, after Charlottetown (-1.8 per cent) and Victoria (-1.7 per cent). These results follow a similar trend of the last few months.
Across BC, the new home price index also fell, dropping 1.3 per cent year over year.
In Vancouver, Victoria and BC, the declines were due to a decrease in house-only prices, which fell 1.8 per cent, 2.2 per cent and 1.9 per cent respectively, while the price of land remained flat.
Victoria saw the country’s largest month-over-month index fall at 0.7 per cent, while BC’s index was the same as August 2014.
Nationwide, the country saw a year-over-year increase in average new home prices of 1.6 per cent. However, month over month, Canada posted an index decline of 0.1 per cent compared with August.
New home prices in Calgary increased the most of all the CMAs surveyed, with an index rise of 6.5 per cent compared with September 2013.
The survey only covers new detached, semi-detached and row houses (town houses or garden homes). It does not cover the cost of new condos.
To see Statistics Canada’s interactive chart, click here.
