Canada reported the worst home sales last month since 2009

According to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), January home sales reached the lowest level in 14 years amid the ongoing slowdown in the national real estate market.

Sales were down by 37.1% annually, following a 3% drop in December.

CREA’s report says the results have offset small December increases, and they are in line with a “mild downward tendency” seen since the middle of 2022.

In addition to it, the MLS Home Price Index saw a monthly decrease of 1.9% and an annual drop of 12.6%.

The largest declines were reported in Greater Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, Edmonton, and Montreal. They offset the increases in Quebec City and Hamilton-Burlington.

The association’s chair, Jill Oudil, says that although new listings also showed almost record-low numbers (they were up slightly by 3.3%), warmer weather in the nearest future could cause an increase.

The senior economist Shaun Cathcart believes a warmer spring market may be close, especially amid statements that a rate hiking cycle is over or heading towards its end.

“As the central bank is actively signalling that rates have reached their cap, it’s possible that the spring market may surprise us, especially in the regions where home prices have been stable or are now getting stabilized,” – he noted.

“Buyers are starting to feel more confident in variable-rate mortgages, and this year will likely provide a good opportunity to shop for a home calmly following the tight market conditions of the previous few years.”

Sales-to-listings ratio remained at 50.7%, almost like during most part of 2022, with 4.3 months of inventory.