6/29/2026
| SHARE
Posted in Canadian Housing Market by Vanguard Realty | Back to Main Blog Page
Canada's housing affordability improved for a ninth consecutive quarter in Q1 2026, reaching its best position since early 2022, though new data from RBC Economics suggests the window for further gains may be narrowing.
RBC's national aggregate affordability measure, which tracks the share of median pre-tax household income required to cover mortgage payments, property taxes, and utilities, fell 1.4 percentage points to 53% in Q1 2026, according to the report authored by Robert Hogue, assistant chief economist at Royal Bank of Canada, and economist Rachel Battaglia.
A lower reading indicates improved affordability. Vancouver and Toronto led the national recovery, even as both cities retained their positions as Canada's least affordable markets.
Montreal, Quebec City, and St. John's moved in the opposite direction, with homeownership costs continuing to climb.
Condos have accounted for the most meaningful progress. The national condo affordability measure now sits at 35.2%, within one percentage point of where it stood before the pandemic.
In Toronto, the condo measure has pulled back to 36.1%, down from 38.5% in Q4 2019, while Victoria's condo affordability has improved to 31.8%, slightly below its pre-pandemic level of 32.2%.
The data marks a notable turnaround for a segment that was among the hardest hit by the post-2022 rate environment, and which Canadian Mortgage Professional has tracked closely through the ongoing difficulties facing Toronto's condo sector in early 2026.
Not all markets have participated in the condo recovery. Tight inventory and the earlier population surge have kept condo prices elevated in Montreal, Quebec City, and Halifax.
Montreal's condo affordability index has now exceeded Toronto's for the first time in 16 years, a reversal that reflects persistent price strength in Quebec's largest city, where home values were 5.5% higher year over year in Q1.
Source: Canadian Mortgage Professional
Canada Living, Canada Real Estate, First Time Home Buyers, Home Buyers, Housing Affordability
