New Condominium Apartment Price Index (NCAPI)

Detailed information for first quarter 2020

Status:

Active

Frequency:

Quarterly

Record number:

5236

The New Condominium Apartment Price Index (NCAPI) is a quarterly series that measures changes over time in the contractors' selling prices of units in new condominium apartment buildings, where detailed specifications pertaining to each unit remain comparable between two consecutive periods.

Data release - May 1, 2020

Description

The New Condominium Apartment Price Index (NCAPI) is a quarterly series that measures changes over time in the contractors' selling prices of units in new condominium apartment buildings in Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, Victoria, and for the composite of these six census metropolitan areas (CMAs). The NCAPI starts in the first quarter of 2017.

The NCAPI covers the new condominium part of the Residential Property Price Index (RPPI).
http://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p2SV.pl?Function=getSurvey&SDDS=5303

A detailed methodology for the RPPI is available in the Prices Analytical Series.
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/62f0014m/62f0014m2019006-eng.htm

Reference period: The time period for which the NCAPI equals 100; currently, this is 2017.

Collection period: The collection process occurs over a two-week period beginning on the 15th of the reference month or the next business day if the 15th is not a business day.

Subjects

  • Construction
  • Construction price indexes
  • Prices and price indexes
  • Residential construction

Data sources and methodology

Target population

All new residential low rise/high rise apartment condominium units available for sale or sold in Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, and Victoria in a given month.

Based on data from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), these six CMAs accounted for 85.8% of absorbed units (completed and sold) in new condominium apartment buildings across all Canadian CMAs in 2018.

Data are also collected for Edmonton, Halifax, and Québec City, however only Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, and Victoria were assessed to have enough ongoing new condominium construction and sales activity to support the estimation of a quarterly price index.

Instrument design

The NCAPI is based on an electronic questionnaire. The questionnaire has been field-tested with potential respondents and their comments on the design and content have been taken into consideration.

The New Condominium Apartment Price Report (NCAPR) collects information on contractors' selling prices for five types of condominium units: one bedroom, one bedroom with den, two bedroom, two bedroom with den, and three bedroom. Based on feedback from respondent testing and industry analysis, these unit types are representative of the unit types commonly available for sale.

The prices used in the index calculation exclude value added taxes such as the goods and services tax, the harmonized sales tax, and the Quebec sales tax. Respondents are asked to report for units which were sold closest to the 15th of the reference month. If no units were sold, list prices were collected for the targeted unit types that were available in the reference month.

In addition to prices, the questionnaire collects detailed information on the characteristics of the condominium development, the building, and the units for which the respondent has agreed to report. Information on the characteristics of the condominium units is used to evaluate the dollar value of the difference in the "quality" between the units for which prices have been reported and a fixed reference unit. Reported selling prices are adjusted for these quality differences so that data collected with the NCAPR can be used to measure a "pure" price change over time for a reference unit.

Sampling

This is a sample survey with a cross-sectional design and a longitudinal follow-up.

The frame is compiled from multiple sources including zoning and planning applications received from municipalities, building permits, builder associations, new home buyer insurance companies and governmental/non-profit home buyer protection services, advertisements, and various internet sources that provide information on upcoming buildings.

The NCAPI uses a multi-stage sample design in which units are selected into the sample at each stage. The first stage of sampling involves contacting developers in the survey frame to determine if they are in scope for the survey. To ensure that the same building can be followed through time, a developer is to report up to four buildings in which less than 70% of at least one of the target unit types have been sold. The second stage of sampling involves selecting one of these buildings into the sample. An electronic questionnaire is then used to collect price information from developers for up to three units of each type in a building each month. The sample is periodically refreshed as buildings sell out and builders enter and exit the market.

Data sources

Responding to this survey is mandatory.

Data are collected directly from survey respondents and derived from other Statistics Canada surveys.

All new condominium developers in the sample are contacted to confirm that they are in-scope for the survey, to identify the condominium developments for which they will report, as well as to collect a respondent name and contact information. This pre-contact is done by computer-assisted telephone interview.

Computer-assisted telephone interviews are also used to collect the first month of data from new respondents. Interviewers request detailed information from developers for the condominium development, building, and unit combinations for which they will report. They also collect prices for the targeted condominium units. Finally, they will ask for permission to pre-fill future electronic questionnaire(s) with information provided by the respondent for a previous period.

After this initial collection, respondents will be sent an electronic questionnaire to self-complete each month for each new condominium development for which they are reporting.

Telephone follow-up is done for failed edits and non-response.

View the Questionnaire(s) and reporting guide(s) .

Error detection

Error detection is an integral part of both collection and data processing activities. During collection, edits are applied to data records to identify missing data, as well as capture and reporting errors. Respondents are asked to validate their data when these collection edits fail.

During data processing, subject matter specialists review the collected data to identify and resolve errors, inconsistencies, and outliers. This review focuses on the behavior of the reported price changes, both to validate them directly and to ensure they are representative of new price movements.

Imputation

Missing data are generally estimated by a systematized imputation process. In any given period, price data may not be available for estimation. In such cases, missing data are imputed using the average price movement of remaining units within the same CMA (overall mean or targeted mean imputation method).

Estimation

The NCAPI is calculated using the Jevons formula (equally weighted geometric mean) combining price relatives within a CMA. Higher level indices are part of the RPPI.

Quality evaluation

Prior to publication, the NCAPI is analyzed for comparability with historical trends, as well as for coherence with results from related economic indicators, known current events, and information from other external sources.

Disclosure control

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects which could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Various confidentiality rules are applied to all data that are released or published to prevent the publication or disclosure of any information deemed confidential. If necessary, data are suppressed to prevent direct or residual disclosure of identifiable data.

Data are released only in the form of a price index, and consequently it is not possible to identify the suppliers of price data nor the owners of the properties.

Revisions and seasonal adjustment

The NCAPI has a one quarter revision period and is not seasonally adjusted.

Data accuracy

The statistical accuracy of this index depends on price data obtained from a sample survey.

Indices are considered to be statistically reliable unless otherwise noted with a quality indicator value.

Response rate:

The average monthly response rate for builders in the survey for 2020 was 80.6%.

Non-sampling error:

When the detailed specifications of a condominium unit change between two consecutive periods, values provided by the builder are used to render the prices for the unit comparable over time. When inaccuracies in these dollar values occur and are not detected, they are a source of non-sampling error.

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