Home resales fall further in December

OTTAWA — Sales of existing Canadian homes fell by 2.5% in December compared to November, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association, capping the weakest annual sales since 2012. Monthly declines in activity since September have fully retrenched the summer rally and returned sales to near the lowest level since early 2013. Transactions declined in about 60% of all local markets in December, led by lower activity in Greater Vancouver, Vancouver Island and Ottawa. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 19% year-over-year and stood almost 12% below the 10-year average for the month of December. The decline is partly attributable to elevated activity posted in December 2017 as home buyers rushed to purchase in advance of the new federal mortgage stress test that came into effect on January 1, 2018.