New report finds the fastest-growing high-end house prices are not in Toronto or Vancouver
Owning a luxury home in Canada has not benefited everyone since the start of the pandemic, with uneven price fluctuations across markets amid a wider optimistic trend for the Canadian housing market in recent months.
A new report from real estate brokerage network Royal LePage shows that, since mid-March, the lower threshold for a ‘luxury’ home varies from $1,000,000 for a Montreal condominium, to $3,500,000 for a detached house in Greater Vancouver.
The national median price of a luxury house increased 1% year-over-year to $2,500,000, while the median price of a luxury condominium remained constant at $1,250,000.
Detached homes saw healthy price appreciation in four major urban centres as demand outstripped supply with Montreal showing the largest increase.
"In recent years, baby boomers and older millennials have been migrating to suburban communities and smaller cities, driven by retirements and growing families, respectively. The quest for affordable space has been supercharged by the pandemic, and no property class has benefited more than the large, detached home," stated Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage.
However, the median price of luxury condos decreased modestly in both the Toronto and Montreal regions, while the median price of a condominium in the City of Vancouver posted double digit growth.
“Some owners have been discouraged by the restrictions on access to shared amenities, such as party rooms and pools, and higher density living in general,” explained Soper. “As a result, the condo segment is more balanced, with people seeking large condos roughly equal to those planning to escape elegant downtown tower living for the 'burbs."
Despite recent gains, Moody’s recently published a gloomy outlook for the Canadian housing market.
Regional prices
Since the onset of the pandemic, the median price of a luxury house in the City of Toronto has risen 5.4% year-over-year to $3,187,500, while the median price of a luxury condominium dipped 1.6% year-over-year to $1,870,000.
The median price of a luxury house in the Greater Toronto Area increased 5.9% year-over-year to $3,177,500 and the median price of a luxury condominium decreased 3.6% year-over-year to $1,830,000.
The median price of a luxury house in the City of Montreal rose 15.9% cent year-over-year to $1,975,000, while the median price of a luxury condominium decreased slightly by 1.5% year-over-year to $1,254,000. The double digit price increase in the city's luxury house segment was the largest gain of both property types across all regions surveyed.
The median price of a luxury house in Vancouver showed healthy year-over-year price appreciation, rising 3.9% to $4,010,000 and 8.6% to $4,180,000 in the greater region since the onset of the pandemic in mid-March.
The median price of a luxury condominium rose 11.2% to $2,065,000 in the City of Vancouver and 10% to $2,035,000 in the greater region.
The median price of a luxury house in Ottawa increased 29% year-over-year to $1,800,000 since mid-March.
