Report: Toronto home sales down 35% in August compared to last year

Sep 6 2017, 10:11 pm

Toronto’s real estate market continues to decline compared to last year.

The latest report from the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) said that home sales were down by 34.8% compared to August 2016, a steep decline – just like July’s 40% drop.

New listings in TREB’s system was also down by 6.7%, the lowest level for August since 2010.

But TREB president Tim Syrianos said that recent reports suggest the economic conditions remain strong in the city.

“Positive economic news coupled with the slower pace of price growth we are now experiencing could prompt an improvement in the demand for ownership housing, over and above the regular seasonal bump, as we move through the fall,” said Syrianos.

The average selling price for all home types combined was $732,292 in August, which is up by 3% compared to last August. According to TREB, this growth was driven by the semi-detached, townhouse and condominium apartment market segments that continued to experience price increases. In Toronto, the average was surprisingly lower than the GTA, at $726,712.

TREB

Meanwhile, the home price index benchmark, which accounts for typical home types throughout TREB’s market area, was up by 14.3% year-over-year in August. This means that there were fewer high-end home sales compared to last year.

This, TREB indicated, means there’s a balanced market, and good news for future Toronto home buyers.

“The relationship between sales and listings in the marketplace today suggests a balanced market. If current conditions are sustained over the coming months, we would expect to see year-over-year price growth normalize slightly above the rate of inflation,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s director of market analysis.

“However, if some buyers move from the sidelines back into the marketplace, as TREB consumer research suggests may happen, an acceleration in price growth could result if listings remain at current levels.”

TREB

So we’ll just have to wait and see how fall affects this unpredictable market.

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