August Numbers Are Out: Year-Over-Year Real Estate Sales & Average Selling Price Were Up by 8.5% & 4.7% Respectively

Toronto Real Estate Board President Garry Bhaura announced last September 6th, 2018 sales and price increases on a year-over-year basis in August.  Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 6,839 sales through TREB's MLS® System in August 2018 – an 8.5% increase compared to August 2017.

Average selling price, at $765,270 was up by 4.7% when compared to the same month in 2017.

"It is encouraging to see a continued resurgence in the demand for ownership housing.  Many home buyers who had initially moved to the sidelines due to the Ontario Fair Housing Plan and new mortgage lending guidelines have renewed their search for a home and are getting deals done much more so than last year.  In a region where the economy remains strong and the population continues to grow, ownership housing remains a solid long-term investment," said Mr. Bhaura.

Month-over-month sales and price growth also continued in August.  On a preliminary seasonally adjusted basis, August 2018 sales were up by 2% compared to July 2018.  The seasonally adjusted August 2018 average selling price was down slightly by 0.2% compared to July 2018, following strong monthly increases in May, June and July.

"Market conditions in the summer of 2018, including this past August, were tighter than what was experienced in the summer of 2017.  In August, the annual rate of sales growth outpaced the annual rate of new listings growth.  We only have slightly more than two-and-a-half months of inventory in the TREB market area as a whole and less than two months of inventory in the City of Toronto.  This means that despite the fact the sales remain off the record highs from 2016 and 2017, many GTA neighbourhoods continue to suffer from a lack of inventory.  This could present a problem if demand continues to accelerate over the next year, which is expected," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

"One of the key issues facing home buyers and renters in the GTA is inadequate housing supply and choice, and one of the main reasons for this is municipal policy that unnecessarily locks up housing options.  Whether it is approval delays, inflexible and outdated zoning rules, or market distorting taxes like Toronto's Land Transfer Tax, current municipal policies are a big part of the reason why there is not enough gentle density housing, like semis, row homes, and multiplexes, in the GTA. This 'missing middle' option is critical for a healthy real estate market and we are encouraging home buyers and renters to let municipal election candidates know their views through our new election campaign web site: UnLockMyHousingOptions.ca," said Mr. Bhaura.

Toronto Real Estate Board: http://www.trebhome.com/market_news/release_market_updates/news.htm