Nova Scotia MLS® market sees slower October sales; active listings climb while prices remain firm
The number of homes sold through the MLS® System of the Nova Scotia Association of REALTORS® totaled 1,078 units in October 2025. This was a slight reduction of 0.9% (10 sales) from October 2024.
Home sales were 4.7% above the five-year average and 3.2% above the 10-year average for the month of October.
On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 9,713 units over the first 10 months of the year. This increased by 1.5% from the same period in 2024.
The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) tracks price trends far more accurately than is possible using average or median price measures. The overall MLS® HPI composite benchmark price was $432,600 in October 2025, up by 5.2% compared to October 2024.
The benchmark price for single-family homes was $428,700, an increase of 6.3% on a year-over-year basis in October. By comparison, the benchmark price for townhouse/row units was $520,400, a moderate decrease of 4.1% compared to a year earlier, while the benchmark apartment price was $450,900, falling by 4.5% from year-ago levels.
The average price of homes sold in October 2025 was $464,573, a gain of 4.2% from October 2024.
The more comprehensive year-to-date average price was $471,075, up by 4.9% from the first 10 months of 2024.
The dollar value of all home sales in October 2025 was $500.8 million, a minor increase of 3.2% from the same month in 2024. This was also a new record for the month of October.
The number of new listings saw a moderate gain of 8% from October 2024. There were 1,419 new residential listings in October 2025. This was the largest number of new listings added in the month of October in five years.
New listings were 11% above the five-year average and 5.9% above the 10-year average for the month of October.
Active residential listings numbered 4,626 units on the market at the end of October, increasing by 9.9% from the end of October 2024. Active listings haven’t been this high in the month of October in more than five years.
Active listings were 27.2% above the five-year average and 11.1% below the 10-year average for the month of October.
Months of inventory numbered 4.3 at the end of October 2025, up from the 3.9 months recorded at the end of October 2024 and below the long-run average of 5.3 months for this time of year. The number of months of inventory is the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.
| Nova Scotia Monthly Summary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 2025 | Residential Sales | Year-over-year % change | Residential Average Price | Year-over-year % change |
| Annapolis Valley | 155 | -7.7 | $385,911 | 0.3 |
| Cape Breton | 87 | 2.4 | $258,389 | 3.0 |
| Halifax-Dartmouth | 516 | 3.2 | $602,837 | 4.1 |
| Highland Region | 43 | -8.5 | $312,574 | 11.1 |
| Northern Nova Scotia | 151 | -1.9 | $301,306 | 2.6 |
| South Shore | 98 | -3.0 | $406,949 | -1.4 |
| Yarmouth | 28 | -15.2 | $308,244 | 8.1 |
| Nova Scotia | 1,078 | -0.9 | $464,573 | 4.2 |
| Nova Scotia Year-To-Date Summary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YTD 2025 | Residential Sales | Year-over-year % change | Residential Average Price | Year-over-year % change |
| Annapolis Valley | 1,412 | 0.7 | $387,906 | 4.0 |
| Cape Breton | 736 | 2.4 | $266,464 | 0.6 |
| Halifax-Dartmouth | 4,629 | 0.5 | $603,132 | 3.9 |
| Highland Region | 390 | 4.3 | $313,659 | 11.2 |
| Northern Nova Scotia | 1,381 | 0.8 | $318,015 | 9.2 |
| South Shore | 952 | 8.3 | $434,749 | 10.5 |
| Yarmouth | 213 | -4.1 | $302,447 | 9.7 |
| Nova Scotia | 9,713 | 1.5 | $471,075 | 4.9 |
BOARD & ASSOCIATION INFORMATION
Trademarks are owned or controlled by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify real estate professionals who are members of CREA (REALTOR®) and/or the quality of services they provide (MLS®).
NSAR represents more than 2000 brokers, salespeople and affiliate (e.g. solicitors, appraisers, banks) members throughout the province. The Association serves its members through a wide variety of educational programs, publications and special services with the vision that learning and sharing real estate knowledge will help the profession advance. Through an agreement with the Nova Scotia Real Estate Commission, NSAR provides all real estate licensing courses in the province. REALTOR® is a trademark, which identifies real estate professionals who are members of The Canadian Real Estate Association and, as such, subscribe to a high standard of professional service and a strict Code of Ethics.
For more information,
please contact:
Tanya White
(902) 468-5874 or 1 (800) 344-2001
twhite@nsar.ns.ca
Suzanne Gravel
