The number of home sales recorded over Canadian MLS Systems in May recorded a 5.5% month-over-month increase, although the figure was also down by 5.1% year-over-year. There were just over 200,000 properties listed for sale on all Canadian MLS Systems on a non-seasonally adjusted basis at the end of May, unchanged from one year earlier and 2.8% below the long-term average for that time of the year.
According to data from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), new listings fell back by 1% on a month-over-month basis last month. When combined with the jump in sales in May, the national sales-to-new listings ratio tightened to 49.2% compared to 46.2% in April. There were 4.8 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of May, down from 5.1 months in February, March, and April.
The National Composite MLS Home Price Index (HPI) edged down 0.1% on a month-over-month basis in May. Aside from April, this was the smallest decline since January 2025. The HPI was down 4.1% compared to May 2025, recording the smallest year-over-year decline so far in 2026.
The non-seasonally adjusted national average home price was $702,079 in May, up 1.5% from the same month last year. It was the highest monthly national average home price in two years and the first time the measure has tipped above the $700,000 mark in 23 months. Regionally, prices remained down on a year-over-year basis in British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario, offsetting gains in other provinces.
“The national sales increase from April to May was broad-based but driven disproportionately by Ontario, suggesting the HST rebate on new builds may have only briefly drawn the attention of buyers away from the existing home market,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s senior economist. “While it was just the first month in 2026 to see any meaningful upward momentum in headline demand, under the surface conditions have been improving for some time. Sellers’ and buyers’ expectations are increasingly aligned, as evidenced by tightening sale-to-list price ratios and shorter periods between listing and sale dates. As a result, prices have largely stabilized following some softness earlier in the year.”
Separately, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) reported May’s housing starts decreased 6% in May to 261,377 units, compared to April’s figure of 278,380 units. Monthly housing starts were down 5.2% year-over-year in centers with a population of 10,000 or more, with 22,633 units recorded last month, compared to 23,879 units in May 2025. The year-to-date total was 93,644 units, up 3% from the same period in 2025, driven by higher starts in British Columbia and Ontario, outweighing year-over-year decreases in the Prairies.
The number of units under construction in centers with a population of 50,000 or more rose 0.9% month-over-month to 374,662 units in May. Completions also increased, with construction finished on 16,880 units, up 10.6% compared to April. The number of units with approved building permits but not yet started fell 2.4% month-over-month to 138,842 units in May.
Aled Ab Iorwerth, deputy chief economist at CMHC, observed, “May’s data showed mixed results. Year-to-date housing starts are slightly up from last year, and the monthly starts trend was basically flat, while units under construction and completions increased. Overall, these results suggest that construction activity is uneven and taken together with the decline of approved units not yet started and market intelligence point to weaker momentum for future supply.”
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