Canada property prices slow

Canada property prices slow

Anyone thinking of buying a property in Canada will be pleased to learn that Canada property price growth is slowing.

The cost of buying a home in Canada slowed in the third quarter of this year to a rate that is historically typical of balanced property markets, according to a new Royal LePage survey.

"Most Canadian housing markets cooled in the third quarter. In fact, the year is unfolding much as we predicted, with the unusually active first half of 2010 giving way to slower markets in the later part of the year," Phil Soper, president and chief executive at Royal LePage Real Estate Services, said in the report.

He added: "Helped by very low rates in a competitive mortgage financing market, the third quarter was slightly stronger than anticipated, on new demand fuelled by improved affordability in many regions."

Soper expects residential prices to remain stable, ensuring that the Canada property market does not become overheated.

Royal LePage said the average price of a detached bungalow in the third quarter was up 4.6 per cent nationally from a year earlier, to $324,531 (200,000 pounds). The price for a standard two-storey home increased 4.4 per cent to $360,329 (223,000 pounds), while the cost of a standard condominium rose 3.9 per cent to $226,481 (140,000 pounds).

To read our guide to buying a property in Canada, click here.

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A Place In The Sun