New Housing Price Index, November 2014
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Released: 2015-01-08
The New Housing Price Index (NHPI) rose 0.1% in November. Provincially, gains in Alberta and Ontario were moderated by a decline in British Columbia.
Chart 1
New Housing Price Index
The census metropolitan area (CMA) of Calgary was the top contributor to the November growth, with prices up 0.3% over the previous month. Builders cited market conditions, higher material and labour costs as well as higher land prices as the reasons for the increase.
Hamilton recorded the largest monthly price increase in November, as prices rose 0.4% for the second straight month. Builders reported increased city development charges and market conditions as the main reasons for the gain.
New housing prices rose 0.3% in the CMAs of Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo and London. Builders in both areas cited higher city development fees as the reason for the increase.
In St. John's, new housing prices rose 0.2% in November after remaining unchanged for the previous four months. Builders cited higher material and labour costs as well as higher land values as the main reasons for the increase.
Prices were unchanged in 7 of the 21 metropolitan areas surveyed.
New home prices fell 0.2% in Vancouver, as builders reported lower negotiated selling prices. This was the first price decrease in Vancouver since July.
Prices were also down 0.2% in Charlottetown as builders lowered prices on inventory homes to stimulate sales. New home prices in Charlottetown have been flat or falling since August 2013.
In Ottawa–Gatineau, prices were down 0.1% in November. Although several builders reported higher prices as a result of market conditions and city development fees, the increases were offset by other builders who reported lower negotiated selling prices and promotions to stimulate sales.
On a year-over-year basis, the NHPI rose 1.7% in November, the largest annual price movement since August 2013.
Calgary (+6.5%) and the combined metropolitan region of Toronto and Oshawa (+2.5%) continued to lead the annual growth. Other significant year-over-year increases occurred in Hamilton (+2.8%) and London (+2.0%).
Among the 21 metropolitan areas surveyed, 7 posted 12-month price declines in November: Charlottetown (-1.9%), Victoria (-1.1%), Ottawa–Gatineau (-1.0%), Vancouver (-0.6%), the combined metropolitan region of Saint John, Fredericton and Moncton (-0.5%) as well as Regina (-0.2%) and Montréal (-0.1%).This was the first annual price decline in Regina since 1985 and the first in Montréal since 1997.
Chart 2
Calgary posts the largest year-over-year price increase
Note to readers
The New Housing Price Index measures changes over time in the selling prices of new residential houses agreed upon between the contractor and the buyer at the time of the signing of the contract. It is designed to measure the changes in the selling prices of new houses where detailed specifications pertaining to each house remain the same between two consecutive periods.
The survey covers the following dwelling types: single dwellings, semi-detached houses and row houses (town houses or garden homes). The survey also collects contractors' estimates of the current value (evaluated at market price) of the land. These estimates are independently indexed to provide the published series for land. The residual (total selling price less land value), which mainly relates to the current cost of the structure, is also independently indexed and is presented as the estimated house series. The index is available at the Canada and provincial levels as well as for 21 metropolitan areas.
The prices collected from builders and included in the index are market selling prices less value added taxes, such as the Federal Goods and Services Tax or the Harmonized Sales Tax.
The index is not subject to revision and is not seasonally adjusted.
The New Housing Price Index for December 2014 will be released on February 12, 2015.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (613-951-4636; statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@canada.ca).
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