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<\/a><\/p>\nPhoto: James Bombales<\/em><\/p>\n Canada\u2019s latest GDP numbers will be released later this week and, to no one\u2019s surprise, the country\u2019s housing market will likely have an impact on the results.<\/p>\n While a trend of slowly rising home sales could add to growth, a relatively cool home building sector could put a damper on things, according to the latest report from TD Economics.<\/p>\n \u201cResidential construction will exert a drag on growth following a deceleration in housing starts\u2026[providing] another headwind to GDP,\u201d writes the TD team.<\/p>\n\n TD is predicting GDP growth of 0 percent for August, following a 1.3 percent increase in the first quarter of 2018. <\/p>\n Earlier this year, Capital Economics chief North American economist Paul Ashworth predicted that the housing market\u2019s lacklustre contribution to the economy would continue well into 2019. <\/p>\n \u201cWe expect economic growth to slow to 1.7 percent this year and only 1.3 percent in 2019, as the housing downturn continues to weigh on consumption and residential investment,\u201d he wrote. <\/p>\n While slowing home sales could weigh on the economy, Ashworth also predicts that house prices will erode in the coming year.<\/p>\n \u201cFor the time being, house prices have merely stagnated rather than collapsing, but that is probably only a matter of time,\u201d he wrote. \u201cEven without a decline in house prices, which would weigh on consumption via the negative wealth effect, we anticipate a sizeable contraction in residential investment over the next few years.\u201d<\/p>\n