Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Canadian sales of existing homes rose in September, a realtor group said.

Sales gained 1.5 percent in September from August to 42,958 units, an increase of 17 percent from a year ago, the Canadian Real Estate Association said today in a statement from Ottawa. Sales are 63 percent higher than in January, which was the lowest level in a decade, the group said.

Canada’s five-year mortgage rate fell to 5.49 percent in the first week of September from 5.85 percent in August, near the 58-year low of 5.25 percent set in April.

The average resale price rose 14 percent from a year ago to a record $331,602 ($320,729) in September. The realtor group said the price gain was due partly to a “sharp rebound in activity at the higher end of the price spectrum.”

The higher prices “are expected to prompt sellers to return to the market after having retreated to the sidelines late last year and earlier this year,” CREA Chief Economist Gregory Klump said in the statement.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alexandre Deslongchamps in Ottawa at adeslongcham@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 15, 2009 14:33 EDT