Home-price increases ‘larger than usual’ in December

House prices continued their upward trend in December, according to the latest Teranet-National Bank Composite National House Price Index (HPI), released on Monday. 

The HPI advanced 0.2% last month, as it did in November. While recent gains in the HPI might seem modest, the report noted that they are actually “larger than usual for this time of the year,” when resale activity is typically low.

“For instance, the 0.2% increase in December compares to an average of 0.1% for this month over the last 11 years,” the report said. “Indeed, after seasonal adjustment, the national HPI ended the year with a 5-month string of gains, including a strong 0.7% rise in December.”

Prices rose in six of the 11 markets covered, including Halifax (0.7%), Montreal (0.4%), Toronto (0.4%), Hamilton (0.4%), Ottawa-Gatineau (0.3%) and Quebec City (0.2%).

Prices fell in the largest cities in the Prairies, namely, Calgary (-0.6%), Edmonton (-0.2%) and Winnipeg (-0.1%).

Vancouver and Victoria remained flat. 

“For 2020, expect home prices to accelerate in all these regions except the Prairies,” the report said.

Maddie Johnson

Maddie is a freelance writer and editor who has been reporting for Advisor.ca since 2019.