Alex Lui's blog

Higher borrowing costs, continued uncertainty about the economy and Bank of Canada's decision-making, and the constrained supply of listings resulted in fewer home sales in August 2023 compared to August 2022. The average selling price remained virtually unchanged over the same period. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, sales and average price edged lower.

“Looking forward, we know there will be solid demand for housing – both ownership and rental – in the Greater Toronto Area and broader Greater Golden Horseshoe. Record immigration levels alone will ensure this. In the short term,...

Greater Toronto Area (GTA) home sales, new listings and home prices were up in July 2023 in comparison to July 2022. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the market experienced more balance in July compared to June, with sales trending lower while new listings were up.

“Home sales continued to be above last year’s levels in July, which suggests that many households have adjusted to higher borrowing costs. With that being said, it does appear that the sales momentum that we experienced earlier in the spring has stalled somewhat since the Bank of Canada restarted its rate-tightening cycle in...

“The demand for ownership housing is stronger than last year, despite higher borrowing costs. With this said, home sales were hampered last month by uncertainty surrounding the Bank of Canada’s outlook on inflation and interest rates. Furthermore, a persistent lack of inventory likely sidelined some willing buyers because they couldn't find a home meeting their needs. Simply put, you can't buy what is not available,” said Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) President Paul Baron.

GTA REALTORS^® reported 7,481 sales through TRREB’s MLS^® System in June 2023 – up 16.5 percent compared...

The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market continued to improve from a sales perspective in May 2023. Unfortunately, the supply of homes for sale did not keep up with the demand for ownership housing. Sales as a share of new listings were up dramatically compared to a year ago. This is a clear signal that competition between buyers increased substantially compared to last year, resulting in the average selling price reaching almost $1.2 million last month.

The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market continued to tighten in April 2023. On a year-over-year basis, sales edged lower compared to April 2022, but new listings were down by more than one-third. Fewer listings relative to sales meant there was more competition between buyers, supporting an improvement in selling prices since the beginning of this year.

Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market conditions tightened in March 2023. Sales accounted for an increased share of listings in comparison to March 2022, suggesting that competition between buyers is on the rise. The average sale price was above the average list price for the first time since May 2022.

February sales in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) were down substantially from the pre-rate hike levels of early 2022. However, the number of new listings also dropped substantially year-over-year. The result was that the average selling price and MLS^® HPI continued to level off after trending lower through the spring and summer of last year.

As we moved from 2022 into 2023, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market unfolded as expected. The number of January sales and the overall average selling price were similar to December 2022. On a year-over-year basis, both sales and prices were down markedly, continuing to highlight the impact of higher borrowing costs on affordability over the last year.

The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market experienced a marked adjustment in 2022 compared to record levels in 2021. Existing affordability issues brought about by a lack of housing supply were exacerbated by sustained interest rate hikes by the Bank of Canada.

Homeownership market activity in November continued to be influenced by the impact of higher borrowing costs on affordability. Sales were down markedly compared to the same period last year, following the trend that unfolded since the commencement of interest rate hikes in the spring. New listings were also down substantially from last year, and at a very low level historically. The fact that the supply of homes for sale has remained low, has supported average selling prices at the $1.08 to $1.09 million mark since August.