Historically high prices and unpredictable mortgage rates made 2023 a challenging year for homebuyers and sellers – leaving many first-time buyers exhausted after battling to get on the property ladder.
Now that prices are dropping in some Canadian cities, hope is on the horizon for first-time buyers who flinched away from last year’s market conditions. However, new homeowners who braved 2023’s hostile market are dealing with the sting of knowing the property they worked so hard for is worth less than what they paid for it only a year ago.
According to a study by Point2, owners of single-family homes and condos in 44 Canadian cities experienced drops in their property values over the course of 2023, with losses as dramatic as $60,000 over the course of the year.
So, who was hit the hardest? Per Point2 data, it depends on property type.
Single family homeowners in Burlington, ON felt the biggest kick overall – losing an average of $163 every day from the value of their homes. Tallied up over the year, that’s a $60,000 loss.
Nearby Ontario cities Kitchener, Mississauga, and Markham also saw the value of single-family homes drop by $109, $114 and $154 per day, respectively.
While the percentages of these decreases might seem benign in the 3-5 per cent range, the lesson here is the higher the price, the harder it falls.
On the other hand, Canada’s condo market seems to be price-correcting at a faster pace than single-family homes. According to Point2, 26 markets saw year-over-year price drops, putting condo owners’ wealth-building capacity on hold for the time being.
Condo owners in Mississauga, Victoria and Barrie faced the steepest losses for their property type. In just one year, owners lost $36,600, $28,250 and $28,000 respectively from the value of their homes.
However, markets that did manage to avoid the downward trend did so spectacularly. Condos in Coquitlam, BC; Halifax, NS; Richmond, BC and Calgary, AB increased in value by more than $50,000.
Although depreciating home values will feel like adding insult to injury for first-time homeowners who persevered through tough market conditions, it’s important to remember that real estate is a long-term investment. While it may take longer for homeowners who took the hit this year to build equity, the achievement of making the leap into homeownership is priceless.
