Montreal posts big home sales gains in November as median prices continue to rise

Montreal-area home sales rose 47 per cent in November compared with a year ago as the province's real estate board says the region saw the second-most activity for the month since 2000.

The Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers says 3,897 homes changed hands in the region last month, up from 2,651 in November 2023. The gain marks a reversal from three consecutive years of sales declines in November and exceeds the historical average for the month by 19 per cent.

Meanwhile, the median price for all housing types was up year-over-year, led by an 11.2 per cent increase in the price of a single-family home to $600,000, followed by a 7.6 per cent rise for condominiums to $425,000 and a 5.3 per cent gain for plexes to $770,000.

Chantal Routhier, the board's assistant director of data analysis and management, says the sales increase can be attributed to the rapid decline in interest rates since last June, along with new government measures to facilitate home ownership.

But she notes that new record-high prices "present significant affordability challenges for many households, while the limited supply on the market further restricts the choices that meet their needs."

There were 4,909 new listings in the Montreal area last month, up 5.8 per cent from a year earlier.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 5, 2024.