Real estate prices drop to Vancouver and Toronto, but go up to Montreal. The world upside down for those over 40.
Baby-boomers, who want to sell their house to go to a RPA (private residence for seniors) or elsewhere will be delighted, as well as those working in commission. The first buyers will cringe.
In the Grand Montreal region, the median price of all properties increased by 3.5 % in the second quarter of 2025 compared to that of 2024. This contrasts with the markets of Toronto and Vancouver, which fell by 3.0 % and 2.6 %, reveals theStudy on the price of houses and market forecasts de Royal Lepage published this Tuesday.
“This is the return of the pendulum. I was in finances for 25 years and at the time, we were still the poor child, observes the spokesperson Marc Lefrançois, real estate broker at Royal Lepage trend. The Toronto and Vancouver markets outlined the Montreal market all the time. Then there, it’s a bit of the opposite.
There are reasons for this. During the pandemic, then a little later, the increase in prices more affected the market of Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa compared to that of Quebec.
Marc Lefrançois, by Royal Lepage Trend
There is also a drop in transactions in the Ontario and British-Colombian metropolitan areas and above all an increase in the number of properties for sale. In Vancouver, buyers now have the big end of the stick.
This is not the case in Quebec, where the median price of all properties climbed 5.4 %.
The unifamilials taste it
By analyzing the data by category, we observe that the median price of a detached unifamilial house has climbed even more, by 7 %, going from $ 645,200 in the second quarter from 2024 to $ 690 100 in the second quarter of 2025.
The increase is lower on the side of condos. The median price increased by 3.6 %. In the second quarter of 2024, a buyer hoped to pay him $ 456 100 while in 2025, the median price reached $ 472,300.
It was Quebec City that has experienced the highest price increase in all types of properties (13.5 %), while Trois-Rivières (11.3 %) and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu (11.4 %) also experienced more dynamic markets than the provincial average.
Although the economic and political context is uncertain, that we have undergone the decline in stock markets and losses in certain sectors, the two consecutive reductions in the key rate by the Bank of Canada, in January and March, prompted hesitant buyers to jump in the real estate market. The problem of the housing offer through the province is an issue that will not be settled soon.
Royal Lepage’s study recalls forecasts for the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Society (SCHL) for Montreal. The construction of 48,888 additional units per year is necessary to meet demand by 2035 and restore an affordability level, that is to say where the prices of dwellings do not exceed 30 % of the average gross income of households.
The downward luxury market
Meanwhile, the luxurious property market, those of $ 1.5 million and more, has slowed down.
“We have a fairly substantial increase in the inventory on the island of Montreal, which brings us back to 2016. Buyers in this category, especially business people who have a link with the American economy, do not want to take risks in a context of economic uncertainty.
“With teleworking, there is no emergency to come and replace itself in luxury in Montreal,” he continues. Luxury is luxury, no one is forced to pay luxury. »»
Despite the uncertain economic context, Royal Lepage does not provide a drop in prices in 2025, quite the contrary. By the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, the price of a property should reach $ 635,472 in Quebec, an increase of 8 %, according to its forecasts.
The demand is always higher than the inventory and interest rates reassure buyers, analyzes the company.