Ottawa Housing Market Report

Ottawa Housing Market Overview

Note: The MLS HPI benchmark price represents the value of a ‘typical’ home in the area.

August 2026 reversed the incremental improvement Ottawa's housing market recorded in July. Transactions dropped to 1,002, a 24.4% fall from July, against a typical July-to-August decline closer to 6% over the previous decade. Prices did not follow. The benchmark price climbed 0.6% to $637,700, and the average price rose 0.7% to $688,253, while the median slipped 2.0% to $622,357. Inventory eased to 4,496 active listings, but with sales falling much faster, months of supply widened a full month to 4.5. Ottawa is still inside balanced territory, though it now sits at the softer end of that band rather than the middle of it.

In August 2026, the average home price in Ottawa's housing market rose 0.7% from the previous month to $688,253, 0.3% higher than a year earlier. That is a second consecutive month in which the average held its ground despite a shrinking pool of transactions.

The composite benchmark price of $637,700 in August 2026 was 1.0% above last year and 0.6% above July. The benchmark price represents the estimated value of a typical home in Ottawa and is useful for tracking market trends because it is less affected by unusually high- or low-priced sales than the average price. With only 1,002 sales in the month, that distinction matters more than usual: the benchmark is the steadier signal, and it points to values that held while volumes did not. Over a longer horizon, the benchmark home price in Ottawa has risen 6.5% over the past five years, roughly 1.3% a year, which leaves the typical Ottawa home worth less than it was in 2021 when adjusted for inflation.

The median price represents the midpoint of all home sales, meaning half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less. In August 2026, the median price was $622,357, down 2.0% month-over-month and 1.2% below August 2025. The median falling while the average and the benchmark both rose points to the mix of homes that sold rather than to a broad repricing: the transactions that did close skewed toward the upper end of the market.

The 1,002 sales recorded in August 2026 were 24.4% below July's total and 18.9% below August 2025. New listings fell 16.2% from July to 2,119, level with the same month last year. Both sides of the market stepped back at once, but buyers stepped back harder.

The sales-to-new-listings ratio (SNLR) fell from 52.4% in July to 47.3% in August 2026, well below the 58.3% recorded in August 2025. For reference, an SNLR of less than 40% indicates that the market favours buyers. An SNLR of 40% to 60% typically indicates that the market is balanced and doesn't tip in favour of sellers or buyers. When the SNLR exceeds 60%, the market is considered to favour sellers.

Another indicator of market conditions is months of inventory, which was 4.5 months in August 2026, up from 3.5 months in July and 3.2 months in August 2025. At this level, the market is still considered balanced. Generally, a balanced market has three to five months of inventory, while less than three months signals a seller's market and more than five months indicates a buyer's market. A full one-month move is unusual for Ottawa: over the previous decade the median July-to-August change was zero and no increase exceeded 0.4 months, according to Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB).

The market had 4,496 active listings, 3.9% fewer than last month but 13.2% more than in August 2025. OREB's review of listing records found that terminations, cancellations and expirations became more prominent relative to completed sales through the summer, so inventory came off the board partly because sellers withdrew, not because buyers absorbed it.

The sales-to-list price ratio in August 2026 was 97.9%, indicating that homes sold 2.1% below the listing price on average, essentially unchanged from July's 97.8% and from August 2025.

The median days on the market, representing the time listed properties remained available, was 29 days, up marginally from 28 days in July 2026.

Looking at the different property types in Ottawa:

• Single-family homes had an average price of $845,113, increasing by 2.5% monthly and 0.7% annually. Sales of single-family homes reached 535, down 25.1% from July and down 16.5% year-over-year.

• The average price of townhouses sold was $529,123, down 2.6% from last month and down 4.8% annually. Townhouse sales reached 310, down 25.7% monthly and down 20.1% annually.

• The average price for apartments in August 2026 was $426,930, down 0.7% from July but up 4.7% from August 2025. Apartment sales reached 136, down 19.5% month-over-month and down 22.7% from August 2025.

August's numbers describe a market that stopped clearing rather than one that repriced. Sales fell 24.4% from July against a decade-long norm closer to 6%, while new listings fell 16.2% and active listings fell 3.9% month-over-month. Supply did not flood in and force prices down; demand withdrew faster than supply did, and the gap between the two opened up in the inventory ratios instead of in the price line.

Because a larger share of listings left the market through termination, cancellation or expiry rather than through a sale, August's smaller active-listing count understates how much latent supply is still attached to the market. If those owners relist in the fall, the inventory that came off in August comes back and 4.5 months of supply becomes a floor rather than a peak. If they stay away, Ottawa heads into the autumn with genuinely tighter supply and a demand problem instead of a supply one.

Borrowing conditions stayed steadier than during the rate-hike stretch of 2022 to 2024, with the Bank of Canada holding a cautious stance and Statistics Canada reporting second-quarter real GDP growth of 3.3% on an annualized basis. Neither rates nor the wider economy deteriorated during the month, which argues against reading August as the start of a demand shock. Mortgage rates nonetheless remain high enough that affordability is still the binding constraint, and Ottawa's public-sector employment base continues to put a floor under demand without lifting it.

Ottawa's housing market remains much more affordable than Vancouver's housing market and Toronto's housing market. Ottawa's average home price was $688,253 in August 2026, compared with Metro Vancouver's average price of $1,213,418 and a Greater Toronto Area average of $993,410 in the same month.

Ottawa's housing market is more expensive than the Calgary housing market, where the city-wide average price was $638,440 in August 2026. Compared with Montreal's housing market, Ottawa's August average sits just below Montreal's average of $689,824, leaving the two markets closely matched. Even so, Ottawa remains far more affordable than Canada's most expensive major markets.

As most homes in Ottawa are well below the $1.5 million mark, they are eligible for a minimum down payment of 5% to 10% with CMHC insurance, allowing more buyers to compete for the inventory.

Terms and conditions apply. Rates are per annum and subject to change without notice. Eligible for CDIC deposit insurance. See WealthONE's website for current rates and applicable balance tiers. Highest rate in Canada for RRSP HISA accounts, as confirmed by WOWA as of July 24 2026

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Terms and conditions apply. Rates are per annum and subject to change without notice. Eligible for CDIC deposit insurance. See WealthONE's website for current rates and applicable balance tiers. Highest rate in Canada for RRSP HISA accounts, as confirmed by WOWA as of July 24 2026

Home Prices in Ottawa

Ottawa Housing Market Statistics for All Property Types in August 2026

Market Overview for Single Family Homes in August 2026

Market Overview for Townhouses in August 2026

Market Overview for Apartments in August 2026