The worst recession since the Great Depression had
a serious impact on housing performance during
the fi rst quarter, with home sales down 27 per cent
nationally, compared to 2008 figures. Consumers
adjusted to new market realities—including buyer’s
market conditions—as the supply of homes available
for sale rose and values dipped. Hardest hit were
markets in Greater Vancouver and Sudbury, where
the number of homes sold declined 40 per cent; Calgary
slipped 35 per cent; and Victoria, Greater Toronto,
St. Catharines, Regina, Montréal, London, Kitchener-
Waterloo, Halifax-Dartmouth, and Hamilton-Burlington
were off 2008 fi gures by more than twenty per cent.
Yet, after one of the most diffi cult fi rst quarters in
Canadian housing history, the market miraculously
changed course. Rising like the phoenix from the ashes,
real estate activity across the country gained momentum.
First-time buyers, feeding on low interest rates, ventured
into the market, taking advantage of greater aff ordability
levels. Move-up purchasers followed in tandem,
trading up to larger homes and/or better neigbhourhoods.
By year-end, housing sales had recovered in virtually
all residential housing markets across the country,
led by a 45 per cent increase in Greater Vancouver.
Two markets, including Ottawa and Québec City, hit
historic highs in residential sales, reporting more than
15,500 and 14,000 units sold respectively. Last but not
least, housing values posted new records in 15 of the 23
markets surveyed, including St. John’s with an upswing
of 15 per cent. Other noteworthy developments include
shattered price benchmarks in Greater Vancouver at
$600,000; Toronto at $400,000; Ottawa at $300,000;
and Québec City and St. John’s at $200,000. Nationally,
residential housing sales are expected to top 465,000
units by year-end 2009, a seven per cent increase over
one year ago; while housing values climb fi ve per cent
to $318,000, up from $303,594 in 2008.
Th e bounce back of 2009 will long be remembered for
its dramatic swing in residential housing sales across
the country. While the aff ects of the recession will
continue to linger in some areas, the worst is clearly
behind us. Th e stock market has rallied, while not
enough to return it to its post-recession high of
15,000. After several consecutive quarters of negative
GDP growth, a small gain was reported in
the third quarter of 2009.