Canadian home sales rise modestly, prices remain soft in April

Canadian home sales rose 0.7% in April to 42,927, but the softer pricing backdrop suggests Home Depot Canada stores are still more likely to see careful, value-minded customers than a full spring spending surge.

The Canadian Real Estate Association said sales were still down 4% from April 2025, while its MLS Home Price Index slipped 0.1% from March and 4.2% from a year earlier. New listings climbed 4.1% month over month, and the national sales-to-new-listings ratio eased to 45.6% from 47.1% in March, still below the long-term average of 54.8%. CREA says readings between about 45% and 65% generally indicate balanced conditions, which puts April near the low end of that range.

For store leaders on the Canadian floor, that mix matters. Softer prices can keep move-related traffic from collapsing, but they do not automatically create the big-ticket remodeling wave that drives kitchen, bath, and flooring sales. A market where listings are rising and prices are soft often sends customers toward maintenance, repair, and phased upgrades first. That means more shoppers comparing paint, fasteners, plumbing parts, weatherproofing, and replacement basics before they commit to larger projects. It also means associates may need to spend more time helping customers decide whether a job is worth tackling now or waiting for better affordability and more confidence.

“While home sales were up only modestly from March to April, the small increase reflected a slow start to the month with a stronger handoff into May, alongside falling days on market and stabilizing prices,” Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s senior economist, said. That is the kind of market signal Home Depot department leads and store managers need to read carefully: not a boom, not a freeze, but a slow thaw.

The regional picture was uneven. TD Economics said Ontario sales rose 4.3% month over month in April, while British Columbia fell 1.1% and Quebec dropped 2.9%. RBC Economics said several markets saw resales increase from March, but activity remained weaker than a year earlier in most places. Scotiabank said the April sales-to-new-listings ratio was very close to its lowest print since early 2009, a reminder that caution still sits close to the surface.

That caution is reinforced by the broader outlook. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation projects real GDP growth of just 0.7% in 2026, with geopolitical and economic uncertainty, interest rates, and affordability still weighing on housing demand. For Home Depot, that points to resilience in repair, maintenance, and pro categories, but hesitation around larger discretionary renovations until financing, confidence, and resale conditions improve.