BusinessRising inflation and fears that interest rates would rise weighed on the housing market earlier this year, prompting CREA to revise its 2026 home sales forecast down. At the same time, the number of homes sold in June rose compared to the month before.June home sales edged up by 0.5% from May, while inflation continued to riseAbby Hughes · CBC News · Posted: Jul 15, 2026 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 37 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.Multiple homes are seen for sale along Brock Avenue in Toronto. Home sales across the country were up slightly in the month of June compared to the same month in 2025. (Patrick Morrell/CBC)The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) revised its home sales forecast for 2026 downward, while new data shows the number of homes sold in June ticked up slightly from the month before.High oil prices fuelled inflation and spurred the possibility that the Bank of Canada would raise interest rates, sending bond yields up and causing fixed mortgage rates to jump earlier this year. These factors have eased somewhat since then, according to CREA, but the association says they still weighed on the housing market in recent months — as did a quicker-than-expected drop in Canada's population."Taken together, the national sales forecast for 2026 was revised slightly lower, reflecting the weak first half of the year, and slightly delayed start to the long-awaited recovery" in the housing market, the association said in a release.CREA had previously predicted a small increase in the number of homes sold in 2026, but it now expects a 1.4 per cent decline compared to 2025. The revision is another downgrade for the 2026 forecast, as CREA already revised its predictions for this year downward in April.WATCH | Toronto's condo market shows signs of recovery:Toronto's condo market shows signs of recovery. Here's what you need to knowMay 11|Duration 2:42After a year of sluggish sales and cancelled projects, Toronto's condo market is showing signs of recovery. CBC's Philippe de Montigny breaks down what you need to know.Data for June showed that national home sales edged up by half a percentage point from the month before, and monthly activity was up 0.9 per cent compared to June 2025.CREA's senior economist Shaun Cathcart said the uptick built on positive momentum in the market that started in May."It's a market that's only just finding its footing," Cathcart said.The MLS home price index showed the benchmark price of a home was $657,700 last month.Regionally, prices in were still down in Ontario, B.C. and Alberta. But Cathcart said those declines have been shrinking, and prices across the country seem to be stabilizing.WATCH | Why some homeowners are in a sticky mortgage payment situation:Why some homeowners are falling into a mortgage payment trap they can't escape | About ThatJune 17|Duration 10:11Many Canadian homeowners took advantage of historically low mortgage rates during the pandemic to lock in for five-year terms. Andrew Chang explains the perfect storm happening now as these terms come up for renewal at much higher rates at the same time as a depressed housing market.