Canadian prices, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose 1.7 per cent on a year-over-year basis in April, down from a 2.3 per cent increase in March. Month-over-month, on a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI was down 0.2 per cent in April. The overall slowdown in headline CPI is largely driven by lower energy prices, catalyzed by the removal of the consumer carbon tax. The CPI ex-energy rose by 2.9 per cent in April. While shelter costs remain the main driver of inflation, grocery price growth has also outpaced the headline CPI over the past three months, with prices rising 3.8 per cent year-over-year in April. In BC, consumer prices rose 2.0 per cent year-over-year, down from 2.6 per cent in March. The Bank of Canada's preferred measures of median and trimmed inflation, which strip out volatile components, are at 3.2 per cent and 3.1 per cent year-over-year, respectively.

While April's CPI report saw inflation fall comfortably into the target range, several underlying trends illustrate upward pressure on prices across many sub-components beyond energy/gasoline. Moreover, the Bank's core measures of inflation rose above their target range, suggesting that  almost all deceleration in the headline CPI was driven by volatile components. Taken together, the Bank faces the decision of either overlooking these pressures in favour of a rate cut or holding its policy rate to defend against further price growth. All eyes shift towards next week's GDP report, which will better show how tariffs are beginning to affect the Canadian economy.

https://mailchi.mp/bcrea/canadian-inflation-april-2025

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

Canadian housing starts rose by 30 per cent to 278,606 units in April at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). Starts were up 15 per cent from the same month last year. Single-detached housing starts increased by 15 per cent from last month at 57,026 units, while multi-family and other starts rose by 35 per cent to 221,582 units (SAAR).

In British Columbia, starts rose by 71 per cent from last month to 53,195 units (SAAR) in all areas of the province. In areas of the province with 10,000 or more residents, single-detached starts decreased by 5 per cent to 3,582 units, while multi-family starts rose by 87 per cent to 47,499 units month-over-month. Starts in the province were 3 per cent below the levels from April 2024. Year-to-date starts are up by 141 per cent in Abbotsford, but down 78 per cent in Nanaimo, 30 per cent in Kelowna, 29 per cent in Victoria, and 25 per cent in Vancouver.

https://mailchi.mp/bcrea/canadian-housing-starts-april-2025

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

To view the full interactive BCREA Market Intelligence report, click here.
To view the latest Market Intelligence report PDF, click here.

Summary of Findings

• Uncertainty related to the threat of tariffs has depressed home sales through the first quarter of 2025.

• As that uncertainty subsides, the path of sales activity will depend on the prevailing tariff regime and the ultimate impact of tariffs on the economy.

• A strong monetary policy response from the Bank of Canada could counteract the negative impact of tariffs, leading to a stronger, faster housing market recovery.
  

The economic uncertainty engendered by the stochastic trade policy of the United States under President Donald Trump has upended what was set to be a return to normalcy in the British Columbia housing market. However, that uncertainty, while still elevated, appears to be subsiding. So, what comes next?

In this Market Intelligence report, we’ll explore some potential scenarios for the BC housing market amidst a cloudier-than-usual outlook.

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani..

For the complete news release, including detailed statistics, click here.

Vancouver, BC – May 2025. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that 6,453 residential unit sales were recorded in Multiple Listing Service^® (MLS^®) Systems in April 2025, down 14.6 per cent from April 2024. The average MLS^® residential price in BC in April 2025 was down 6.1 per cent at $942,884 compared to $1,003,638 in April 2024.

The total sales dollar volume was $6.1 billion, a 19.7 per cent decrease from the same time the previous year. BC MLS^® unit sales were 27 per cent lower than the ten-year April average.

“Regional activity continued to diverge in April with more expensive regions experiencing a larger drop in sales activity,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “Uncertainty regarding trade and monetary policy has caused trepidation for prospective buyers, largely in the Lower Mainland, prompting overall provincial activity to fall far below historical averages.”

Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume is down 11.7 per cent to $20.7 billion, compared with the same period in 2024. Residential unit sales are down 7.9 per cent year-over-year at 21,676 units, while the average MLS^® residential price is also down 4.1 per cent to $953,674.

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

During 2015, the city of Melbourne came up with a clever idea: give each of its 70,000 trees a unique ID number and an email address. The practical goal was to help citizens report fallen branches, damaged trees or tree-related trouble. Each tree’s email was linked to a database, making maintenance a breeze.

But then something adorable happened. People didn’t simply send emails to report issues; they wrote to the trees. They sent love letters, shared life updates and checked in on their leafy friends. One particularly lucky elm received a sweet note: "I hope you're doing well this autumn!"

Instead of shutting down the program, the city leaned into the fun and turned it into a PR success. Some emails even got replies (although Melbourne’s city employees might wish the trees could type the responses.)

Of course, these trees aren’t actually scrolling through their inboxes, but that hasn’t stopped people from sending a little love to their favorite branches!

The slowdown in home sales registered on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Metro Vancouver that began early this year continued in April, with sales down nearly 24 per cent year-over-year.

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

Some months feel big — full of milestones, decisions and changes you can see coming from a mile away. But May is quieter. It’s not about the big moments; it’s about the little ones.

The first morning you step outside and realize the weather is warm enough to leave your jacket behind. A cool breeze on a long afternoon drive. That stretch of golden light that lingers just before the sun sets a few minutes later than it did last week.

Humans tend to overlook these things and rush past them while waiting for something bigger. But sometimes, the little things are what keep us moving forward and remind us that not every step has to be planned or that every season has to be about change. Some things are meant to be lived — one small, beautiful moment at a time.

So, this month, I’m being attentive to the little things. I hope you are, too.

With gratitude,

Gino Pezzani

Personal Real Estate Corporation

RE/MAX Heights Realty

Mobile: (604) 418-9366

Email: gino@vanhomesales.com

https://vanhomesales.com/blog.html

The influence of mothers shapes us in subtle and profound ways. Although every mother doesn’t achieve heroic recognition, their daily choices, their persistent faith in our potential and their quiet wisdom help build the foundation of who we become. Through their example and encouragement, we often find strength we didn't know we had.

During the 1950s, when Eustacia Cutler took her 4-year-old daughter Temple to the doctor, she heard words no mother wants to hear. The doctors diagnosed Temple with autism and then recommended institutionalization — the standard medical advice of that era. They said Temple would never speak, never connect, never thrive.

But Eustacia saw something different in her daughter's eyes. Where others saw only limitations, she noticed how Temple could think in pictures, how she related to animals in unique ways and how she processed the world differently — not wrongly.

Against the prevailing wisdom of the time, Eustacia made a bold decision. Instead of institutionalizing Temple, she created an enriched environment at home. She hired a speech therapist, encouraged Temple's natural interests and, most importantly, presumed competence when others assumed limitation.

Her insight proved transformative. Temple Grandin went on to earn a Ph.D., revolutionize animal science, design more-humane livestock-handling equipment used worldwide and become one of the world's most-influential voices in understanding autism.

Today, Dr. Temple Grandin often credits her success to her mother's early insight. "My mother never gave up on me,” she said. “She recognized that different didn't mean less." Sometimes a mother's wisdom isn't just about raising a child; it's about changing the world's perspective, one person at a time.

Happy Mother's Day!

Gino Pezzani
RE/MAX Heights Realty
www.vanhomesales.com
604-418-9366

Canadian employment was virtually unchanged from the previous month, gaining 7,400 jobs to 20.969 million in April. The employment rate fell by 0.1 points to 60.8 per cent, while the unemployment rate rose by 0.2 points to 6.9 per cent. Average hourly wages rose 3.4 per cent year-over-year to $36.13 last month, while total hours worked were up 0.9 per cent compared to April of the previous year.

Employment in B.C. rose by 0.2 per cent to 2.951 million, gaining 6,000 jobs in April. Employment in Metro Vancouver fell by 0.7 per cent to 1.7 million in April. The unemployment rate in B.C. increased by 0.1 points to 6.2 per cent in April. Meanwhile, Vancouver's unemployment rate fell by 0.1 points to 6.3 per cent in the fourth month of the year.

April's jobs report signals a further cooling of the Canadian labour market through the spring as tariff uncertainties continue to weigh on the Canadian economic outlook on multiple levels. As the anticipated consequences of tariffs ripple through the economy, the Bank of Canada may consider a rate cut during their next meeting to partially alleviate the economic damages caused by a highly volatile global trading environment.

https://mailchi.mp/bcrea/canadian-employment-april-2025

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.