Condominium prices across Canada rose to an average $487,525, a 3.3. jump year-over-year in the last quarter of 2019, according to the new Royal LePage House Price Survey.

Condos remain the fasting appreciating housing type, mainly found in the country’s largest urban centres where most of this data is gathered from.

Prices vary from region to region. In Q4, the Greater Toronto Area experienced the highest increase, where the average price reached $565,919, up 7.8 per cent since the same time in 2018. The Greater Montreal Area condos reached an average 338,148, while the Greater Vancouver area saw a year-over-year drop of 3.4 per cent to $645,607.

The price gap between detached homes and condos is tightening. So, detached homes are looking more attractive, especially for millennials looking for more space for their growing families.

Still, in areas like the GTA, all home prices are heating up as demand outdoes supply. In 2020, the average home price in Canada is expected to rise to $669,800. As of Q4 last year, that average stood at $648,544.

This rise is expected as more buyers have returned to the market after waiting to see the potential impact of the government’s mortgage stress test. Buyers were said to be “waiting on the sidelines” in the beginning of the year after adjustments were first proposed in 2018.

“The federal government has signaled that changes could come to the mortgage stress test mechanism in 2020,” said Phil Soper, president and CEO, Royal LePage. “The stress test pushed people out of real estate markets across Canada temporarily. For the most part, buyers have adjusted, yet it still represents a significant hurdle as families pursue the dream of owning their own home.”

.”