After a busy July, real estate activity in the Greater Toronto Area broke yet another record in August for monthly home sales. Recently released data from the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) for August revealed that home sales reached 10,775, a staggering increase of 40% from last year. The average home price jumped 20%, or $158,793, to $951,404, also setting a new record.
“Increased demand for ownership housing has been based on improving economic conditions, in terms of monthly GDP growth and job creation, and the continuation of very low borrowing costs. In addition, fewer households have chosen to go on vacation as a result of COVID-19 and instead have remained in the GTA and been active in the housing market, satisfying pent-up demand from the spring,” said TRREB President, Lisa Patel.
Greater Toronto Detached House Sales Rise 50%, Condo Apartment Sales Only Up 11%
Although the total number of homes sold was up by 40% across the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, there was a notable difference in growth between property types. Larger homes generally saw the biggest annual sales increases, with detached house sales up 50% year-over-year (y-o-y), semi-detached sales rising 66%, condo townhouse sales increasing 38%, while condo apartment sales saw a modest bump of 11% in comparison.
According to Jason Mercer, TRREB’s Chief Market Analyst, “Generally speaking, market conditions remained very tight in the GTA resale market in August. Competition between buyers was especially strong for low-rise home types, leading to robust annual rates of price growth.”
Average sold prices also grew the most among larger properties: the average detached house price increased 20% from last year, or $193,960, to $1,172,880, the highest since the spring of 2017 when the average price was above $1.2 mil. Semi-detached house prices increased 18% to $905,712, condo townhouses rose 14% to $660,177, while the average condo apartment price grew steadily by 10%, or $55,011, to $629,643.
Average Detached House Price Hit Record High in Multiple GTA Regions
For several Greater Toronto regions, the average detached house price in August shot up to near-record highs for some, while others even crossed the threshold.
By dollar amount, the average detached house price in the City of Toronto experienced the steepest rise, followed by Halton Region. In the City of Toronto, detached houses saw a $258,708 annual increase, or 21%, to reach $1,505,100; the number of detached property sales had seen an astounding 64% y-o-y jump. In Halton Region, which includes Oakville, Burlington, Milton and Halton Hills, the average detached price jumped $208,394, or 19%, to $1,283,651 – an all-time monthly high.
By annual percentage growth, the average detached home price in Durham Region, which includes cities like Ajax, Oshawa, Pickering and Whitby, took the top spot with a 22% increase. The average detached price reached a record high of $813,740 for the region, jumping $145,916 from last year.
Additionally, the average detached home price in Peel Region also rose substantially in August by 18% to $1,112,634; this figure was just below the high set last month in July at the bar of $1,114,829. In York Region, the average detached price increased 15% to $1,308,430.
City of Toronto Condos In Buyers’ Market Territory, New Listings at a Record High
Although the condo apartment market in the Greater Toronto Area experienced an increase in sales activity during August, the rise was modest in comparison to the amount of inventory added to the market. Condo apartment sales rose 11% while new listings leapt an overwhelming 104% increase. Active listings reached 6,302, doubling last year’s levels.
“With growth in condominium apartment listings well-outstripping condo sales growth, condo market conditions were comparatively more balanced, which was reflected in a slower pace of price growth in that segment,” said Jason Mercer, TRREB’s Chief Market Analyst.
Within the City of Toronto specifically, where more than two-thirds of GTA condo apartment transactions took place, condo apartment sales grew 9% annually to 1,536 in August. New listings increased at a substantially higher rate of 117% to 4,153 – an all-time monthly high. The divergence between demand and supply resulted in market conditions shifting to a buyers’ market, as measured by the sales-to-new-listings ratio (SNLR) of 37% – a stark contrast to last August’s SNLR of 74% when the market was in sellers’ market territory. The SNLR is a measure of market competition that is determined by dividing the number of sales by the number of new listings. A figure between 40% to 60% indicates a balanced market, while above and below that threshold reflect sellers’ and buyers’ markets, respectively.
Despite the reduced competition, the average City of Toronto condo apartment price still rose 9%, or $53,867, from last year to $673,174.
Check out the infographics below to see how sales and average prices changed by home type for TRREB and the City of Toronto in August.
Note: Comments and stats highlighting the Toronto Region as a whole are a reference to the areas covered by TRREB, which include: Durham Region, Halton Region, Peel Region, York Region, Toronto, Dufferin County and Simcoe County.
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