Despite a soft close to the year, the 2025 Ottawa resale market was largely stable, balanced and resilient, according to the Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB). That traditional stability included a 1.2 per cent increase in year-over-year sales and prices that were up only slightly compared to 2024, a contrast with the price corrections in some other markets, added the board.
Despite that overall stability, seasonal patterns were not normal last year. The traditional busy spring market was delayed as a long winter, tariff chaos and a looming Canadian federal election made would-be buyers hold back. The summer was steady, without the usual mid-year dip, and sales in the last four months of the year first increased and then dropped back.
“Even with a quieter finish to the year, Ottawa’s housing market showed real stability in 2025,” said board president Tami Eades in a statement. “Sales and dollar volume both surpassed 2024 levels despite more moderate conditions through the fall. That balance points to a market driven by fundamentals, not pressure.”
December results
Realtors sold 587 homes in December through the board’s Multiple Listing Service (MLS). While that was down sharply from the previous month, it was on par with long-term averages for December, yet showed “continued buyer caution,” said the board, presumably in the face of uncertainty about federal civil service job cuts and the ongoing trade war with the United States.
Both new and active listings also fell in December in keeping with traditional holiday-season patterns. Inventory levels, which have been growing since the end of the sales boom that marked the COVID-19 pandemic, were up 29 per cent at the end of December compared to the same month last year.
Prices remained relatively stable in December, reported the board, with the average price of a resale home at $658,943. The average price for all housing types in 2025 was $700,349.
Detached homes led the market in sales during December and throughout the year in keeping with the primary position of single-family homes in Ottawa’s resale sector. The average price for a detached resale home in December was $796,608. “Limited availability and consistent demand continue to support detached homes, which remain the anchor of Ottawa’s market stability,” said the board.
Townhomes continued to be resale buyers’ second-most-popular choice, with an average price of $548,745 in December.
Apartment condos, which have faced a continuing uphill battle for some time, were the softest part of the Ottawa market in December and 2025 generally. There were almost eight months of inventory in the apartment condo market last month, which the board characterizes as “oversupplied” and contrasts with 4.3 months for single-family homes and 2.3 for townhomes. The sale price of apartment condos averaged $401,465 in December, down almost five per cent compared to the same month last year and nine per cent lower than December 2023.
Looking ahead
The board foresees any improvement in the resale market as gradual rather than immediate. “Interest rate relief has helped support confidence, but buyers continue to move carefully, keeping a close eye on broader economic conditions. A period of modest ups and downs within an overall theme of stability appears likely for 2026,” said the board.
Re/Max, in its 2026 forecast issued at the end of November, largely concurred with OREB’s predictions. “Ottawa is positioned for modest, steady growth rather than any dramatic swings,” said Re/Max. It predicted a five per cent growth in sales compared to 2025 and a three per cent price increase. The report also said, “As borrowing costs continue to ease, more first-time buyers and move-up buyers who delayed plans in 2023 and 2024 are expected to re-enter the market.”
