Based on Moe’s video of August 4, 2024. For this month’s numbers, see GTA Housing Market Today.
این مقاله به فارسیRead in FarsiIn July 2024 the average Canadian home cost about $824,000, up roughly 2% from a year earlier, while sales stayed slow. RE/MAX named Old Town the best neighbourhood in Toronto and the Downtown West End of Calgary the best in Canada. Property tax increases were steepest in St. John's and Victoria.
I am Moe Asgarian, a Broker with RE/MAX in Toronto, ranked 47th worldwide inside the company. Every month I go through the reports that land on my desk and keep the ones that change what I tell a client. These are the July 2024 reports worth knowing about.
Canada's Average Home Price in July 2024
The headline national number in July 2024 was about $824,000 for a home across Canada, roughly 2% higher than the same point in 2023. What drew attention was the shape of it rather than the level. Prices edged up while the number of transactions dropped sharply, and analysts read that combination as a sign of a market that is not working properly, one that needs to be pushed back toward order.
The same July 2024 data showed that even with the rate cuts, Canadians had not decided to come into the market. Some of the people who had been hesitating did the opposite and brought their homes to market instead. Lower rates in July 2024 had not made housing affordable, which is the sentence that really matters in that report.
RE/MAX on Quality of Life and Canada's Best Neighbourhoods
A RE/MAX report released around July 2024 looked at quality of life in Canada, and the results were warmer than I expected. Canadians were largely satisfied with the neighbourhood they live in, and close to half said they like their neighbourhood a great deal. The factors they weighed came in a clear order: affordability first, then the safety of the neighbourhood, then walkability, then the age of the housing stock.
The report also named the best areas across the country. In Toronto, Old Town scored highest, the historic and older part of the city that takes in St. Lawrence Market, the Distillery District and the King and Queen West streets. Nationally, the Downtown West End of Calgary came out on top. If you are choosing between neighbourhoods in Toronto, a list like that is a starting point, not an answer, because the factor at the top of the list is affordability and that is personal.
Property Taxes Across Canadian Cities in 2024
Another list published in July 2024 ranked Canadian cities from most to least affordable on property tax. On how much the tax went up, the results were mixed. Plenty of cities saw a large increase, while in others the change was smaller or the tax came down. Montreal had the largest decrease from the previous year. At the other end, St. John's in Newfoundland at around 10% and Victoria in British Columbia at around 9% had the highest increases.
On the tax rate itself, Greater Vancouver, Abbotsford, Victoria and Montreal were the lowest, while the highest percentages belonged to Sault Ste. Marie, Saint John in New Brunswick, London in Ontario and the Niagara region. One thing to hold on to from that July 2024 list: a city like Vancouver or Toronto can show a low rate and still leave owners paying more property tax in dollars, because the average home price there is so high. Rate and bill are not the same number.
How Much the Rate Cut Saved Homeowners Each Month
A table published in July 2024 put a figure on what the rate cuts were worth, city by city. On a five-year variable rate, the average Canadian homeowner was paying about $155 less per month, which works out to roughly $1,860 a year. In Vancouver the saving was about $166 a month. That is useful money, and it is also a lesson in scale. A payment that is $155 lighter is welcome in any household, but on its own it does not turn someone who could not buy into someone who can.
What BMO Said About the Market After the Cut
BMO, the Bank of Montreal, published its first read on the market after the rate cut in July 2024. Its analysts showed with numbers that while the market was changing compared with before, the amount of easing delivered so far was not enough to produce a genuinely new market. That matched what I was seeing in my own deals through the summer of 2024. Rates came down, buyers noticed, and transaction volumes still had not followed.
If you want to go through what these numbers mean for your own street, your own budget and the decision in front of you, fill out the form at the bottom of this page or book a free consultation. Stay well and take care.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the average home price in Canada in July 2024?
The national figure in July 2024 was about $824,000, roughly 2% higher than the same point in 2023. Sales volumes at the time were low, which is why analysts described the market as unbalanced rather than recovering.
Which Toronto neighbourhood ranked best for quality of life in 2024?
Old Town, the historic older part of the city that takes in St. Lawrence Market, the Distillery District and King and Queen West, scored highest in Toronto in the RE/MAX quality of life report released around July 2024. Nationally, the Downtown West End of Calgary ranked first.
How much did the 2024 rate cuts reduce Canadian mortgage payments?
On a five-year variable rate as of July 2024, the average Canadian homeowner was paying about $155 less per month, which works out to roughly $1,860 a year. In Vancouver the saving was about $166 a month.