Canadian home sales posted their first monthly increase since November, rising 3.6% in May from April as activity rebounded in key markets including Toronto, Calgary, and Ottawa, according to data released by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA).
The gain suggests early signs of stabilization in a housing market that had been grappling with macroeconomic uncertainty and a sluggish start to the year.
“May 2025 not only saw home sales move higher at the national level for the first time in more than six months, but prices at the national level also stopped falling,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s senior economist. “It’s only one month of data, and one car doesn’t make a parade, but there is a sense that maybe the expected turnaround in housing activity this year was just delayed by the initial tariff chaos and uncertainty.”
The number of newly listed homes also rose, climbing 3.1% from April. With supply and demand rising in tandem, the national sales-to-new listings ratio held steady at 47%, just above April’s 46.8%, and remained well below the long-term average of 54.9%–a sign the market remains in relatively balanced territory. Ratios between 45% and 65% are typically considered consistent with a balanced market.
National inventory levels also improved. There were 201,880 properties listed for sale across all MLS® systems by the end of May, up 13.2% year-over-year but still about 5% below the 10-year average of 211,500.
“May saw an increased number of new listings hitting the market early in the month, followed by a higher number of transactions in the second half,” said CREA Chair Valérie Paquin. “It seems like this momentum may carry into June as well.”
There were 4.9 months of inventory available nationally at the end of May, slightly below the long-term norm of five months. A seller’s market typically corresponds with levels below 3.6 months of supply, while a buyer’s market is defined by inventory exceeding 6.4 months.
Home prices remained flat month-over-month. The National Composite MLS® Home Price Index edged down just 0.2% in May, following three consecutive monthly declines of around 1%. On an annual basis, the index fell 3.5%.
The national average home price was $691,299 in May 2025, down 1.8% from a year earlier.
