| Real Estate Market

May home sales continued at low levels, especially in comparison to last spring’s short-lived pick-up in market activity. Home buyers are still waiting for relief on the mortgage rate front. Existing homeowners are anticipating an uptick in demand, as evidenced by a year-over-year increase in new listings. With more choice compared to a year ago, buyers benefitted from more negotiating room on prices.

“Recent polling from Ipsos indicates that home buyers are waiting for clear signs of declining mortgage rates. As borrowing costs decrease over the next 18 months, more buyers are expected to enter the market, including many first-time buyers. This will open up much needed space in a relatively tight rental market,” stated Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) President Jennifer Pearce.

Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 7,013 home sales through TRREB’s MLS® System in May 2024 – a 21.7 per cent decline compared to 8,960 sales reported in May 2023. New listings entered into the MLS® System amounted to 18,612 – up by 21.1 per cent year-over-year.

The MLS® Home Price Index Composite benchmark was down by 3.5 per cent on a year-over-year basis in May 2024. The average selling price of $1,165,691 was down by 2.5 per cent over the May 2023 result of $1,195,409. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the average selling price edged up slightly compared to April 2024.

“While interest rates remained high in May, home buyers did continue to benefit from slightly lower selling prices compared to last year. We have seen selling prices adjust to mitigate the impact of higher mortgage rates. Affordability is expected to improve further as borrowing costs trend lower. However, as demand picks up, we will likely see renewed upward pressure on home prices as competition between buyers increases,” said TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer.

“In order to have an affordable and livable region over the long term, we need to see a coordinated effort from all levels of government to alleviate our current housing deficit and to provide housing for new population moving forward. On top of this, governments need to ensure the delivery of infrastructure to support our growing population. The economic health and liveability of our region depends on the timely completion of public transit projects including better transparency and clear timelines on the completion of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT,” said TRREB CEO John DiMichele.

 

 

Condo Market Update

The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) condominium apartment sales increased moderately in the first quarter of 2024 relative to the first three months of 2023. However, over the same period the number of condo apartment listings increased by a greater annual rate. With buyers benefitting from more choice, the average condo selling price edged lower.

Total condominium apartment sales amounted to 4,747 in Q1 2024 – up by 5.3 per cent on a year-over-year basis. New condo listings were up by more than 23 per cent over the same period.

“TRREB’s consumer polling, conducted by Ipsos, suggests that many renter households will have no more patience for rent increases before they consider purchasing their first home. Once interest rates start trending lower, look for condo sales to pick up as more first-time buyers enter the market,” said TRREB President Jennifer Pearce.

The average condominium apartment selling price in the GTA was $693,754 in Q1 2024 – down by one per cent compared to $700,704 in Q1 2023. In the City of Toronto, which accounted for almost two-thirds of total condo sales, the average selling price was $723,186 – down by 0.5 per cent compared to Q1 2023.

“As first-time buying activity increases with lower borrowing costs later this year and into 2025, inventory will be absorbed and market conditions will tighten. Increased competition between condo buyers will result in upward pressure on selling prices,” said TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer.

If you’re thinking of selling or buying a property or just want to pick our brains, we’re here to help! Just email us at hello@christinecowern.com or call us at 416-291-7372. We’d love to connect!