Worries about tariffs and the trade war may have been weighing on the minds of potential home buyers and sellers, but the month of May showed some upward momentum, which could signal that the housing market is starting to warm up as summer officially approaches.
“May 2025 not only saw home sales move higher at the national level for the first time in more than six months, but prices at the national level also stopped falling,” said Shaun Cathcart, senior economist at the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA).
“There is a sense that maybe the expected turnaround in housing activity this year was just delayed for a few months by the initial tariff chaos and uncertainty.”
According to the latest report from the Canadian Real Estate Association, national home sales in May were up 3.6 per cent compared to April of this year, and the number of new properties added to the market increased by 3.1 per cent in the same period.
The CREA also highlighted that the increase last month was led by more activity in hot markets like the Greater Toronto Area, Calgary and Ottawa.
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This still represents a cooler market than the same time in 2024, and that’s mainly because of uncertainty about the economy due to the trade war and other factors weighing on buyers and sellers.
The national average sale price in May was 1.8 per cent lower than last year. When adjusting for seasonal factors, the Home Price Index was relatively unchanged in May compared to April of this year.
Potential buyers may have been waiting on the sidelines for concerns about the trade war to settle, as well as to see how interest rates might be affected.
As the Bank of Canada continues with its ‘wait and see’ approach in determining whether to make any changes to borrowing costs, which have a direct effect on mortgage costs, buyers who had been waiting for rates to decrease further may have been putting down offers on homes in May.
Although this is a promising sign for the housing market, the CREA findings are mostly based on national averages, and it’s important to consider individual needs and preferences.
“Overall (there were) more sellers and buyers (in May) compared to April … it seems like this may carry over into June as well,” said CREA chair Valérie Paquin.
“If you’re looking to buy or sell a property heading into the second half 2025, you’ll need to understand how national trends are — or are not — playing out locally.”
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