Prince Eduardo island reduced a national trend last month, registering an increase in the number of houses that changed hands.
“The smallest places can have more volatility, so, you know, a car does not make a parade. We will have to see how that develops in the future,” said Shaun Cathcart, a senior economist of the Association of Real Estate of Canada, or creates.
“The places that are relatively affordable have done much better during this time.”
The total sales activity in February rose 10 percent in PEI during January, according to Data.
Year after year, February 2025 was a jump of 7.7 percent in total residential and non -residential sales compared to the same month in 2024.
Canada as a whole saw a 9.2 percent drop in month sales in month, and a 9.7 percent decrease in February 2024 to 2025.
Cathcart pointed out the inauguration of Donald Trump on January 20, and the subsequent threats of the president of the United States to impose tariffs on a large number of Canadian products, such as the beginning of a period in which people in this country began to withdraw the purchase plans at home.
Uncertainty really throws cold water into those … long -term decisions.– Shaun Cathcart, creates
While it remains to be seen how prolonged commercial war will affect the real estate market, Cathcart said that possible buyers and vendors seem to be shyming in the short term.
“Uncertainty really throws cold water into those … long -term decisions. It does not mean that the demand for three years of record growth of the population … [has] gone anywhere, “he said.
“All stars are aligned for a year of rebound in the real estate market, except for the fact that the United States is threatening to crash our economy suddenly. Both for 2025 is the first normal year of the 2020 decade.”
Another factor in the increase in PEI’s sales could be interprovincial migration, particularly from places like Ontario and British Columbia. Housing owners who have sold in these regions can seek to buy in a less expensive market, the economist suggested.
This type of impulse to housing sales on the island is a “double -edged sword,” said Cathcart, because it benefits the existing owners who seek to sell, but also tends to reduce the relative purchasing power of young people.
“If you are a young person who is looking for that home in an affordable market and now you have to suddenly compete with people from Toronto who only sold a really expensive house … or have brought their Toronto salary with them through remote work, that is causing many problems in many places.”
Lower interest rates? It is not so easy
A potential solution is the Canada Bank that reduces interest rates, said Cathcart. In theory, that would allow more people to buy in the provinces of their homes.
However, US tariffs could be a problem again: commercial wars tend to increase inflation, which the Canada Bank can choose to try to control through higher interest rates.
“If the Bank of Canada could reduce interest rates … to support the economy, [that] I would probably keep some people in BC and Ontario because I would bring back that idea I could buy in those places, “said Cathcart.
“But the Bank of Canada may not be able to reduce rates due to inflation. And that is its mandate, control that. That could be bad for the real estate market throughout the place, but definitely worse for the places that are more expensive.”
