The average home price in the GTA surpassed $788,000 in March

While the average home price in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) topped $788,000 last month, new listings continued to decline and home sales fell flat, which is why the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) is calling for stress test provisions and mortgage lending guidelines to be reviewed.

TREB president Garry Bhaura says the OSFI stress test continues to impact a home buyers’ ability to qualify for a mortgage.

“TREB is still arguing that the stress test provisions and mortgage lending guidelines generally, including allowable amortization periods for insured mortgages, should be reviewed,” said Bhaura, in a statement Wednesday.

He also added the supply of listings in the GTA “remains a problem.”

See also

• The average cost of rent in Canadian cities for March 2019 (MAP)
• There's a 253-sq-ft 'tiny home' for sale in the GTA for $200,000 (PHOTOS)
• Toronto ranked one of North America's least affordable cities for housing

According to TREB, there were 7,187 homes sold in the region in March, down by one home from the same month a year earlier.

Summary of TREB MLS Sales and Average Price/March 2019

The MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark, which allows you to see trends in home prices for a specific type of house in a given neighbourhood, was up 2.6% year-over-year in March, while the average selling price for March was up 0.5%, or $3,821 from a year earlier to $788,335.

TREB MLS Sales & Average Price By Home Type/March 2019

“Market conditions have remained tight enough to support a moderate pace of price growth. Despite sales being markedly lower than the record levels of 2016 and early 2017, the supply of listings has also receded,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Chief Market Analyst.

“This means that in many neighbourhoods throughout the GTA, we continue to see competition between buyers for available listings, which provides a level of support for home prices,” said Mercer.