Home prices fuel record affordability gains, but relief remains elusive

Canadian housing affordability improved for the tenth consecutive quarter in Q2 2026, driven mainly by falling home prices as mortgage rate relief wanes. The national composite index dropped 11.4 points since Q4 2023, with six major markets seeing gains due to price declines outpacing rising financing costs. However, affordability remains worse than historical norms nationwide, with significant regional variation. Future improvements depend on uncertain home price and income trends.