Vancouver shed 1.6% in a single month while Quebec City ran 9% hotter than a year ago
Canada's 11 largest metropolitan housing markets recorded a 0.2 percent drop in home prices between July and August 2026, the eighth decline in nine months.
The Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index follows a 0.1 percent increase in July. Before seasonal adjustments, the composite fell 0.6 percent over the month, its first decline in six months.
Daren King, an economist with the Economics and Strategy Group at National Bank of Canada, wrote in the report, as carried by BNN Bloomberg, that this marks the eighth decline in nine months.
Prices have fallen 4.2 per cent since their peak in November 2025, to their lowest level since April 2023.
Vancouver fell 1.6 percent from July, the steepest monthly drop among the composite markets, according to the index.
Halifax fell 0.6 percent, Winnipeg and Hamilton each fell 0.3 percent, Ottawa-Gatineau fell 0.15 percent, and Edmonton fell 0.1 percent.
Prices rose in Victoria, up 0.5 percent, Quebec City and Toronto, each up 0.4 percent, Montreal, up 0.3 percent, and Calgary, up 0.2 percent.
Among the 20 metropolitan areas outside the composite with August data, 10 declined, the report states.
Saint John fell 7.2 percent after a 4.6 percent gain the previous month, St. Catharines fell 3.3 percent, and Belleville fell 2.7 percent.
Thunder Bay rose 3.9 percent, Lethbridge rose 3.2 percent after a 3.1 percent decline, and Abbotsford-Mission rose 1.9 percent after a 2.6 percent decline.
Between August 2025 and August 2026, the composite index fell 3.6 percent, a steeper drop than the 3.2 percent recorded the previous month.
Seven of the 11 composite cities posted annual declines, led by Vancouver at 6.5 percent, Hamilton at 6.2 percent, and Toronto at 6.1 percent.
Quebec City rose 9.0 percent year over year, Montreal rose 4.1 percent, and Winnipeg rose 2.4 percent.
Fifteen of the 20 metropolitan areas outside the composite posted year-over-year declines, according to the index.
St. Catharines fell 8.9 percent, Barrie fell 7.7 percent, and Guelph fell 7.3 percent, while Thunder Bay rose 13.0 percent and Trois-Rivières rose 5.9 percent.
"The price increase in July capped a recovery in activity observed in the resale housing market during the spring and summer, which was driven by a significant improvement in the labour market over that period and in housing affordability conditions," the report said, as reported by BNN Bloomberg.
"However, home sales began to decline again in August, which had a negative impact on price trends, while the upswing in the job market appears to be fading."
Housing affordability "is expected to deteriorate over the coming quarters," the report said, according to BNN Bloomberg.
The sharp rise in US bond yields has pushed Canadian bond yields higher, the report said.
Mortgage rates have seen limited impact so far, but higher financing costs are expected in the coming weeks, which the report said will limit borrowing capacity and weigh on price growth.
