Canada has witnessed a significant increase in the prices of residential units and homes over the past two years, and owning homes has become extremely difficult.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) announced that home prices are expected to rise to record levels, comparable to those in 2022, and may reach new record highs by 2026.

According to the latest housing market forecast report issued by CMHC, it indicated that housing starts in Canada are expected to decline this year before recovering in 2025 and 2026, which reflects the delayed impact of rising interest rates on new construction.

The report issued on this matter last week by the agency revealed that starts began at 137,915 new units last year in Canada’s six largest cities, where levels remained consistent with the past three years due to an increase in new apartments.

The referenced report stated that despite the increase in rental housing supply on the market during 2023, it is not expected that supply will keep pace with demand, leading to rent increases and a decline in occupancy rates in the coming years.