July sales and prices soar!

July home sales are backing up industry boasters, with new CREA numbers confirming a 9.4 per cent rise from the same month last year.

The jump suggests that Canadian homebuyers have adapted to new mortgage rules introduced last year and meant to slow home sales. Still this July’s gangbusters performance is largely owing to last July’s slowdown, say experts.

Today’s market is nonetheless looking up. Prices in July 2013 rose 8.4 per cent from the year ago period, according to the CREA report, released Thursday.

It also identifies an 8.6 per cent rise in home sales in Ontario, where the average price shot up 7.4 per cent. Another of the country's other major market, B.C., saw prices climb a whopping 212.5 per cent, with sales making an even more impressive hike of 18 per cent, year over year.