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The result of all this activity has been to push up prices — most notably in the hottest corridors to the west and east of the downtown core, along the Ottawa River.

The benchmark price across the city for single family homes jumped 8.5 per cent to $409,200 in February compared to a year earlier. Benchmark prices are based on an index that standardizes housing features and is considered a better barometer of underlying trends.

Price increases varied widely, ranging from a 28.5 per cent jump year-over-year for homes in Rockcliffe Park to a hike of just 1.9 per cent in Carlsbad Springs. This result accelerated the already huge difference in home values between these two districts. Single-family homes in Rockcliffe Park fetched $1.5 million in February (the highest in Ottawa) compared to $324,200 in Carlsbad Springs (the lowest in the city).

Price patterns have altered somewhat during the past few months. In February, just six of the top 10 real-estate districts — when measured by price gains — were in the corridor stretching west along the Ottawa River from Island Park Drive to the new Department of National Defence headquarters at 60 Moodie Dr. Last autumn, nearly all the hottest districts could be found here.

What’s changed has been a recent run-up in prices in the most exclusive areas of the city. Districts that include Rockcliffe Park, New Edinburgh and Manor Park have each seen dramatic rises in the value of single-family homes (some of it courtesy of extremely low sales volume, which can skew the percentages). In New Edinburgh-Lindenlea, for instance, the benchmark price in February was $756,500 — up 25.4 per cent from February 2017. This makes it the third most expensive district in the city, only marginally behind Carlingwood-Westboro.