Canadian property prices show consistent growth

Recent figures show that property prices in Canada have grown consistently throughout 2015.

According to the latest Canadian Real Estate Association House Price Index, property prices in the country rose by 5.19 per cent on a year-over-year basis in November. Price gains have held steady between five and five-and-a-half per cent since the beginning of the year.

Two-storey single family homes continue to post the biggest year-over-year price gains (+6.79 per cent), followed closely by townhouse/row units (+5.63 per cent). Price growth was comparatively more modest for one-storey single family homes (+4.20 per cent) and apartment units (+3.18 per cent).

Price growth varied among housing markets tracked by the index. As in recent months, the cities that tend to be most popular with immigrants continue to post the biggest year-over-year increases – Calgary (+8.53 per cent), Greater Toronto (+7.73 per cent), and Greater Vancouver (+5.69 per cent). By contrast, prices in Regina declined by 3.36 per cent.

Calgary

Property price rises in Calgary have been among the strongest in Canada throughout 2015

In other markets from West to East, prices were up between 1.6 and 2.8 per cent on a year-over-year basis in the Fraser Valley, Victoria, and Vancouver Island, by less than one per cent in Saskatoon and Ottawa, flat in Greater Montreal, and down by less than one per cent in Greater Moncton.

No matter where in Canada you plan on moving to and, ultimately look to buy a property, you will find your purchase will be directly affected by the exchange rate you receive when changing your Pounds for Canadian Dollars. Choose the right time to exchange and you could potentially have thousands of more dollars available to put towards your property purchase.

For example, imagine you sold your UK property earlier last month and decided to exchange, say, £150,000 for Canadian Dollars straight away. If you had carried out this exchange on 25th November then you would have received just CDN$263,700. However, had you decided to wait a few weeks and exchanged yesterday then you would have received a far more wallet friendly CDN$274,350 – a potential gain of over CDN$10,000 towards a new property in less than a month.

While some would-be immigrants view the exchange market as little more than a lottery, and are happy to exchange their money when they have it regardless of the rate they receive,  wiser emigrants plan the exchange well in advance by engaging the services of a specialist foreign exchange firm like Halo Financial.

Foreign exchange companies understand why the exchange rates are moving and just what impact this has on your currency transaction. What’s more, they can also explain how to make your money go further and give you a range options on exactly when you wish to exchange, and how much you should exchange at a time.

To find out how you can make sure you can get the best exchange rate possible, take advantage of positive fluctuations in the markets and make sure you start your new life with the most purchasing power possible, visit www.halofinancial.com

Article published 19th December 2014