CREA August 2026: National Sales Flat Again as New Listings Rebound 3.3%

The Canadian Real Estate Association released August 2026 national MLS® statistics on September 15, and the headline is stability with a twist: seasonally adjusted home sales edged down 0.7% month over month, leaving activity largely unchanged since May, while new listings finally rebounded after three straight declines.

For Ontario and GTA readers watching rates and inventory heading into fall, CREA's package also flags a sales-to-new-listings ratio that eased into the balanced band, inventory stuck at 4.8 months for a fourth straight month, and a national average sale price that is barely higher than a year ago.

Sales: flat on trend, softer versus last August

National home sales recorded over Canadian MLS® Systems fell 0.7% month over month on a seasonally adjusted basis in August 2026. CREA notes that monthly activity has now remained largely unchanged since May — a fourth consecutive month of little movement on the sales and price trend side.

On an actual (not seasonally adjusted) basis, August activity came in 6.9% below August 2025. That year-over-year comparison is the cleaner read for brokers comparing calendar months, but CREA's preferred seasonally adjusted series is what shows the market has been sideways rather than collapsing.

“Sales activity and price trends were largely unchanged for a fourth consecutive month in August,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s Senior Economist. “What has changed is the broader economic environment, with the Bank of Canada recently warning of rising inflation risks, along with doubts about the durability of recent economic growth. For borrowers, fixed mortgage rates have already increased on higher bond yields. Meanwhile, on the variable rate side, a rate hike is not only back on the table for this year but already priced in by markets. This fresh round of incoming headwinds is expected to dampen the prospects for further housing market momentum heading into 2027.”

New listings snap a three-month slide

Newly listed properties climbed 3.3% month over month in August, reversing three straight declines earlier in the summer. CREA says the gain was broad-based across the largest markets and most apparent toward the end of the month.

“The noticeable increase in new supply in August was both broad based across all the largest markets and most apparent towards the end of the month. This suggests sellers were looking to get an early start to the fall market, particularly given how late Labour Day was this year,” said Garry Bhaura, CREA Chair. “For buyers, it will mean the usual seasonal burst of new properties to choose from, but at the same time they also have to contend with a fresh round of economic uncertainty.”

That combination — a small decline in sales plus a rebound in new supply — pushed the national sales-to-new listings ratio to 49.1%, down from 51.1% in July. CREA's long-term average for the ratio is 54.7%, and readings roughly between 45% and 65% are generally consistent with balanced housing market conditions. August sits comfortably inside that band, but closer to the softer edge than July was.

Inventory: still ~200,000 listings, still 4.8 months

There were just under 200,000 properties listed for sale on all Canadian MLS® Systems at the end of August 2026 — in line with the historical average for that time of year and only 1.4% above the year-earlier level. CREA says overall supply has been more or less sliding sideways since spring 2025.

National months of inventory held at 4.8 months for the fourth consecutive month, slightly below the long-term average of about five months. Using CREA's one-standard-deviation bands around that long-term average, a seller's market would be below 3.6 months and a buyer's market above 6.4 months — so August remains in balanced territory on this measure as well.

Prices: MLS HPI flat; average sale price $668,219

The MLS® Home Price Index was unchanged month over month and down 3% year over year. CREA notes prices have remained largely unchanged month-to-month since the spring — the longest stretch of price stability since 2024, when prices were flat throughout the year. The non-seasonally adjusted National Composite MLS® HPI was down 3% versus August 2025; year-over-year declines have been shrinking since January, and August's reading was the smallest decrease since October 2025.

The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average sale price was $668,219 in August 2026, up 0.6% year over year. CREA continues to caution that average price is useful for trends over time but does not capture neighbourhood divergence or geographic mix shifts.

What it means for Ontario and GTA buyers

Put the pieces together and August looks like a balanced national market that has stopped improving rather than one that is breaking lower: sales sideways since May, HPI flat month to month, inventory stuck at 4.8 months, and new supply finally waking up into fall.

The rate backdrop is the new risk. CREA's senior economist is explicitly tying softer 2027 momentum to Bank of Canada inflation warnings, higher fixed rates on bond yields, and markets already pricing a variable-rate hike this year. That lands just after Statistics Canada's August CPI held at 3.0% nationally with Ontario ticking up to 2.4% — the same inflation tape GTA buyers have been watching ahead of the Bank's next decisions.

For sellers, CREA Chair Garry Bhaura's read is that August's listing rebound was an early start to the fall market after a late Labour Day. For buyers, more choice is arriving into a market that is still balanced nationally — but with fresh rate and growth uncertainty layered on top.

CREA's next national statistics package is scheduled for Friday, October 16, 2026.

Sources

• CREA — September 15, 2026 News Release (August 2026 MLS® Statistics)

Compiled by the Real Estate HQ editorial desk from primary data releases (sources linked above) and reviewed for accuracy. Figures are as reported on the release date.