As we enter the dog days of summer, the GTA real estate market continues its strong pace. With 8,595 sales reported in July, there was a 24.3% increase in sales volume over the same period last year. Total sales for 2019 are now up 12.1% year-over-year.

The average price of all transactions was $806,755 — a second straight monthly decline — but still representing a healthy annual gain of 3.2%. Prices continue to be driven by the high-density market, which include semis (+5.3%), towns (+4.3%) and condos (+6.7%). Average price growth was held in check by single detached homes which were down 0.9% for the GTA and down 9.1% in Toronto.

With condo prices on the rise, the biggest gains in sales volume continue to be found in low-rise housing. In July, detached home sales were up 29.7%, semis were up 42% and towns were up 21.6%. Condominium sales also jumped 14.3%. Worth noting, the percentage change in sales for the 416 and 905 regions were virtually identical for all property types.

New listings were up 3.7% from last July but well short of the pace of sales growth. Currently, there is a 2.1-month supply in the GTA, down from 2.9 months a year ago. We can expect upward pressure on prices as buyers compete for a limited housing stock in the face of these ‘seller’s market’ conditions.

Despite the summer holiday season, there has been tremendous activity in the GTA housing market. With buyers and sellers having adjusted to new mortgage rules, an ever-growing population, and declining housing supply, we are seeing increased competition for available listings, resulting in shorter sales cycles and price growth in much of the market.