What’s Happening In The Market
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) has published the housing data for July, and is reporting 9,390 sales for the month. This is down 14.9% in comparison to last year’s record, but remains historically strong for this time of year, exceeding the 10-year average of 8,670 sales.
Despite the decrease in year-over-year sales, market conditions tightened, as sales accounted for a greater share of new listings. In fact, new listings were down 30.7% year-over-year. With 9,732 active listings, the market has just over 1-month supply, which reflects strong sellers’ market conditions.
Listings continue to sell quickly. The average sale in July occurred in only 15 days on the market. Of course, this varies by housing type and region. Single detached homes sold in 14 days on average (15 in Toronto), semi-detached are selling in 11 days (12 in Toronto), townhomes are selling in 11 days (12 in Toronto), and condo-apartments are selling in 18 days (17 in Toronto).
The short sales cycle and low inventory are putting upward pressure on prices, and it is common for homes to sell over the listing price: the average sale in July was 4% over the asking price. This statistic also varies by housing type and region. On average, single detached homes sold for 4% over list, semi-detached homes sold for 7% over list, townhomes sold for +6% over list, and condo apartments sold for 1% above list. Durham region, which includes Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, and Oshawa, regularly saw sale prices of 10% over list.
July’s average sale price of $1,062,256 was an increase of 12.6% year-over-year. The MLS Home Price Index (HPI) Composite Benchmark, which reflects annual inflation, was up 18.1% (10.1% in Toronto). The biggest increase in value was found in single detached homes, which are up 22.6% (14.7% in Toronto).
Looking at price by category, detached homes sold for an average of $1,405,478, representing a year-over-year increase of 21.7%. The average price for semi-detached homes was $1,027,895 (+12.2%) and townhomes rose to $849,950 (+15.9%). The average price of condos was $674,490, 6% from a year earlier.
The market for real estate remains strong across the GTA. Price growth has slowed down since the Spring but remains in the double digits. In the absence of more supply, expect strong upward pressure on home prices for the remainder of the year, especially as we see a likely resurgence in population growth heading into 2022.
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