Toronto Real Estate Market Update – May 2014

The pace of Toronto’s residential resales accelerated in May. More sales were reported in May than in any month this year and last year. The highest number of sales reported in 2013 was 9,946 in May of that year. This May 11,079 properties were reported sold. This represents an 11.4 percent increase compared to the 9,946 properties that were reported sold in May 2013. The 11,079 sales was a record, the highest number of sales ever reported for the month of May for the greater Toronto area.

It is not surprising given the market’s performance in May, that in addition to record sales volumes, the monthly average sale price also hit a new record. The average sale price for all properties sold in the greater Toronto area came in at $583,204, the highest average monthly sale price on record, surpassing the previous high of $578,118 achieved only last month. May’s average sale price was 8.3 percent higher than the $540,544 average sale price the greater Toronto resale market delivered last May.

Not only did both sale prices and volumes produce records in May but these records were achieved in record time. The average days on market was only 21 days. Last year it was 23. In many trading areas the pace of sales was even faster. For example in Toronto’s eastern districts, all reported sales took place in only 15 days, a remarkable pace. Not only did all properties sell at a record pace, but all reported sales achieved sale prices that equaled or were greater than the list price. In the City of Toronto all properties sold for 101 percent of their asking price. In the eastern trading areas they sold for 103 percent of their asking price.

The market was also strong at the higher end, properties having an average sale price of $ 1 Million or more. In that category 946 properties were reported sold in May. This represented a 34 percent increase compared to the 702 sales that occurred in this category in May last year. It is interesting to note that 171 properties were reported sold having an average sale price exceeding $ 2 Million or more, a 43 percent increase compared to the 120 that sold last year. A cynical analysis would hold that with average sale prices increasing at the pace they have, what was an “average” house only a few years ago is now classified as a high end sale.

The most expensive place to live is in Toronto’s central districts. The cost of a detached home in central Toronto is now $1,441,785. A semi-detached home is selling for $ 901,659. Prices are no where near as high in the 905 region. The average price of a detached home in the 905 region is only $648,439, less than half of what it would cost to be in a “similar” home in Toronto’s central districts. A semi-detached home can be purchased in the 905 region for $443,644… $458,000 less than buying a semi-detached home in Toronto’s central districts.

Not all of the City of Toronto is as pricey as the central districts. The average price of a detached home in Toronto’s western districts came at $762,528, and a similar property can be found in the eastern districts for $631,594. Semi-detached properties, as expected, sold for less on average. In the western districts the average sale price in May was $553,912 and $ 637,347 in the eastern districts. Interestingly and no doubt due to short supply and the variety of housing quality, there is almost no difference in the average sale price between detached and semi-detached properties in Toronto’s eastern districts.

Toronto’s overall average sale price would have been higher if not for condominium apartment sales. This sector of the market, though robust, is simply not selling at the same pace as detached and semi-detached sales in the City of Toronto. In May 1,565 condominium apartments were reported sold in the City of Toronto. Including the 905 region there were 2,234 sales in total, or just over 20 percent of the entire market place. The average sale price for condominium apartment sales in May was $401,809 (also a record). Unlike other housing forms it took 29 days for all sales to take place and for average sale prices that were only 98 percent of the asking price. The difference between condominium apartment sales and freehold in the City of Toronto is inventory. In May there were 5,133 active condominium apartments available for sale. The total number of properties available for sale, including condominium apartments, was only 8,310. In other words condominium apartments available for sale represented more than 60 percent of all available properties for the entire City of Toronto.

Generally inventory levels remain low. At the end of May there were only 18,931 properties available in the entire greater Toronto area. This is 1 percent less than the 19,080 properties available for sale at this time last year.

Going forward we should anticipate more months like May. The market is strong for a variety of reasons, but predominately because of low mortgage interest rates. As this report was being prepared most lending institutions were offering 5 year fixed rates less than 3 percent. There is no likelihood that rates will be increasing in 2014. As a result, the market is on pace to deliver more than 90,000 property sales in 2014. This would make 2014 the second best year on record for property sales, surpassed only by the 93,193 reported sales achieved in 2007.

Toronto Real Estate Market Update – April 2014

The Toronto residential resale market continued a string of strong monthly performances in April, a trend that defines the spring market: low inventories, strong sales and rising average sale prices. Mortgage interest rates remain king. Historically low with no likelihood of an increase for the remainder of this year. As this market update was being prepared Laurentian Bank was offering a three year rate of just under 2 per cent, the lowest mortgage rate ever offered in Canadian history.

In April 9,706 residential resale properties were purchased, many by buyers eager to take advantage of the exceptional low rates. This compares with 9,535 sold last year, an increase of 1.8 per cent. The number of properties sold would have been much higher had there been more properties available for buyers to purchase. Most of the sales were in Toronto’s 905 region. In fact 60 per cent of all sales were in the 905 region, with only 3,544 in the actual City of Toronto. There are two obvious reasons for this trend. Property values are less in the 905 region, and buyers only pay one land transfer tax. With the average sale price steadily rising, the additional land transfer tax charged by the City of Toronto adds many thousands of dollars to the purchase of a home. A misguided tax that should be reconsidered.

In April the average sale price for all residential properties sold in the greater Toronto area came in at $577,898, the highest average monthly sale price ever recorded. In the City of Toronto the average sale price was more than 10 per cent higher at $641,666.00. Average sale prices for detached and semi-detached properties in Toronto also reached record levels. The average sale price for detached homes increased by 13.2 percent in April (as compared to last year) and the average price of semi-detached homes sky rocketed by 18 percent. Detached homes in Toronto now sell for $965,670 and semi-detached homes sell for $702,332. The most expensive neighborhoods for buying a home are in Toronto’s central district. The average price of a detached home in Toronto’s central districts comes in at an eye-popping $1,506,782. Semi-detached properties were not far behind at $942,267.

April’s average sale prices not only produced record numbers but they did so in record breaking speed. All properties in Toronto and the 905 region sold in only 20 days on average. Last year it took 23 days for all properties to sell. Within various neighborhoods the speed of sales was even faster. For example, in Toronto’s eastern region all detached homes sold in a remarkable 10 days. Not only were sales fast, but all on average sold for 104 per cent of their asking price. Although not as quickly, but still remarkable, all detached homes in the central district sold in 17 days, and for 100 per cent of their list price. It must be reiterated that the average sale price of these homes was $1,506,782.

Condominium apartments remain the most accessible housing type for Toronto buyers. In the City of Toronto alone 1,505 condominium apartments were sold in April, 3.2 percent more than last April. Prices, however, did not reflect what is occurring with detached and semi-detached housing sales. The average price of condominium apartments rose moderately by 1.8 percent to $384,758, still an affordable housing alternative, and probably the only choice available to first time buyers. More than 63 percent of all condominium apartment sales took place in Toronto’s central neighborhoods, predominately downtown.

April saw a considerable spike in high end property sales, properties having a sale price in excess of $1 Million. These amounted to more than 8 percent of the total sales for the month of April. 828 sales were reported in this category. Last year there were only 606, a 36 percent increase. More surprisingly were the number of properties sold achieving a sale price of more than $2 Million. 135 of these properties traded hands in April. Last April only 98 properties in this price range found new buyers, a year-over-year increase of almost 38 percent.

One of the factors driving this robust market is inventory levels. The greater Toronto area reported only 2.5 months of inventory. Some trading areas were in even greater need of new listings. Toronto’s eastern, and still less expensive districts, reported only 1.7 months of inventory. The number of new listings coming to market is not encouraging.

In April 17,351 new properties came to market, 4.5 percent less than in April 2013 (18,160). As we enter May, there are only 19,118 properties available for buyers to consider as compared to 20,866 last year at this time, 8.4 percent less choice. This is a difficult market for buyers. Limited choice, and competition for what is available. There is nothing that points to a change to this environment anytime soon.

Toronto Real Estate Market Update – March 2014

There were few surprises in the residential resale data that emerged for March sales in the greater Toronto area. The trend continues. Low inventories of available property’s are driving sales and average sale prices, fueled by historically low mortgage interest rates. Rates might even get lower before they start to rise. At the end of March the Bank of Montreal made available a five year mortgage with an interest rate of only at 2.99 percent. Since mortgage interest returns are the banks’ primary source of revenue, increasing competition amongst banks, and no doubt lower rates over the short term, can be anticipated. This is no doubt good news for Sellers who find themselves with multiple bidders for their properties, all hoping to purchase a property before mortgage interest rates begin to rise.

In March 8,081 residential properties traded hands, an increase of more than 7 percent compared to 7,537 sales reported in March 2013. The bulk of these sales took place in the 905 region. Of the 8,081 reported sales, 5,103 took place in Halton, Peel, York, Durham, Dufferin and Simcoe County, This is not surprising considering that consumers have more choice in the 905 region, and prices remain lower than comparable properties, if you can find them, in the City of Toronto. Although the gap is declining, the average price for a detached house is $254,000 less in the 905 region –and the buyer pays only one land transfer tax- than in the city of Toronto. Semi-detached homes are $222,000 less expensive.

As has been reiterated in many of the last Market Reports, inventories remain a problem. At the end of March there were only 16,543 available properties in the greater Toronto area for buyers to choose, 10 percent fewer than the 18,384 available at the end of March 2013. A positive turn in March was the number of new listings that came to market. This March 14, 829 new properties were listed by realtors in the greater Toronto area. Although only 1.4 percent higher than the 14,618 that came to market in 2013, it represents the first year over year increase that the market has witnessed in a number of months. One month does not create a trend, but it may be that sellers sitting on the metaphorical real estate fence are coming to market in order to capitalize on the surging average resale prices.

In March the average resale price came in at $557,684, a record for Toronto, surpassing the previous record for a single month achieved only last month. February’s average sale price came in at $552,885. March’s average sale price was almost 8 percent higher than the average sale price achieved in March 2013. Increases were consistent across all housing types. Detached homes in Toronto increased by 6.8 percent, semi- detached by 8.7 percent, townhouses by 7.7 percent , and condominium apartments by 5.1 percent.

Central Toronto remains the most expensive place to live in the greater Toronto area. The average price of a detached home in March exceeded $1,400,000. Semi –detached homes are equally expensive, averaging more than $800,000 for a typical semi. The least expensive area to live in Toronto is now the west end. The average price of properties came in at $587,980, $21,000 less than east end properties. East end properties however remain the hottest real estate commodity in Toronto. All east end properties sold in only 10 days, with most of these sales taking place in Riverdale, Leslieville, and the Beaches. Not only did these properties sell quickly, but on average they sold for 109 percent of their asking price. This is an unprecedented pace for sales. The overall market, including the 905 region saw all properties sold in a startling 21 days, 3 days faster than sales took place in 2013.

Condominium apartment sales continue to lag as compared to free-hold sales, although the pace of sales in that market sector is also accelerating. In February condominium apartment sales took 34 days to sell. This pace was consistent with the pace of sales over the last year. In March all condominium apartment sales were achieved in a mere 29 days, the first time that the 30 day barrier has been broken. Given the fact that inventories in this sector are not increasing dramatically, it can be anticipated that over the short term condominiums apartment sales will continue to accelerate. In March 2,941 new condominium apartment listings came to market. Last March 2,850 new listing became available. Heading into April 4325 listings will be available for sale, only 5 more than in April 2013. It is interesting to note that condominium apartment sales now represents 45 percent of all sales that take place in the city of Toronto.

Looking forward April should, subject to available inventories, total close to 10,000 property sales. Last April the Toronto Real Estate Bard reported 9,535 sales. There are many buyers attempting to take advantage of five year interest rates that are less than 3 percent, and lenders are eagerly attempting to loan them money. However, with average sales prices beginning to move towards $600,000, an increase in mortgage interest rates maybe the trigger that will slow sales. Since there is no indication of a rate increase, there is no apparent end to the Seller’s market place we have been experiencing since the spring of 2013.

Toronto Real Estate Market Update – February 2014

The story of Toronto’s resale housing market is straight forward yet troublesome. There are simply not enough properties on the market to meet demand, and as a result, average prices continue to rise. These rapidly rising prices are beginning to cause observers of the Toronto resale market to express concern. The Deutsche Bank (the most skeptical), the International Monetary Fund, and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development are amongst the various institutions expressing concern that Toronto’s resale market is overvalued. Various economists, including Nouriel Roubini and Ed Devlin of the bond giant Pacific Investment Management Company, have also stepped in, announcing that there is a lot of “frothiness” in the Toronto market. Except for the Deutsche Bank no one sees the market approaching bubble territory, but all are predicting a meaningful correction of some degree.

The data is beginning to speak quite eloquently. Notwithstanding an extreme winter month, February produced 5,731 resale transactions in the greater Toronto area, 2.1 percent more than the 5,613 reported sales in February 2013. In the City of Toronto condominium apartments accounted for half of all reported sales. Sales of other housing types were down as compared to February last year. They were down because there was an insufficient number of available detached, semi-detached and town houses to meet the demand. Detached were off by 8 percent, semi-detached by 11.8 percent, and townhouses by 8.8 percent. Condominium apartment sales were up by 9.6 percent. Of the 2136 reported sales for the City of Toronto, 1031 were condominium apartments.

Insufficient inventory continues to plague the market place. In February 10,897 properties became available for sale in the greater Toronto market place, 1 percent less than the 11,005 that became available last year. This decline, albeit moderate, contributed to the dwindling portfolio of the active listings. At the beginning of March there were 14,019 properties available for sale, more than 12 percent less than the 15,969 properties available to buyers in 2013. This lack of inventory is what is fueling the market, causing buyers to compete for favourable properties, and in the process driving average prices higher. At the beginning of March there were only 2.5 months of inventory for the entire greater Toronto area. A balanced market is not achieved until there are 4 months of inventory.

In January the average sale price for all properties sold came in at an alarming 9.2 percent. There was little abatement in rising average sale prices in February. February’s sales produced an average sale price of $ 553,193. This was 8.6 percent higher than last year’s average sale price of $ 509,396. By housing type, the increase in average sale prices was even more dramatic. Detached homes in the City of Toronto increased by 15.7 percent to $ 995,314; semi-detached moderately increased by 8 percent to $ 668,298, a small increase due to a lack of supply; and townhouses increased by a startling 20.7 percent to $ 545,043. The overall average was brought lower by condominium apartment sales, which only increased by 6 percent to $ 372,628. The most expensive neighbourhoods in Toronto are located in the central core. The average price for a detached property in Toronto’s central core came in at $ 1,425,485. Semi-detached houses on average cost $924,496 in the central core. Notwithstanding these lofty prices, all detached houses listed in February (on average) sold in just 19 days, and all semi-detached houses sold in an eye-popping 9 days, and for 109 percent of the asking price.

The most active trading area in Toronto is the eastern districts, and in particular for detached properties. Every district in the eastern trading area reported sales that met or exceeded the asking price, and in some cases by astonishing numbers. For example, sales in the eastern neighbourhoods known as Riverdale and Leslieville, saw the reported sale price exceed the asking price by 12 percent for all properties sold. Not only that, but all these properties took only 9 days to sell and be reported sold.

The slowest housing sector remains condominium apartments. Whereas all other property types were selling in 26 days or less, in the City of Toronto it took condominium apartments 34 days on average to sell. Reported sale prices for condominium apartments were not as frothy as the sale prices of other housing types. On average sale prices came in at only 98 percent of asking price. The average sale price for central Toronto condominium apartments (where most are located) was $ 419,663, a lot less than the average sale price of detached and semi-detached homes. Surprisingly there are still condominium apartments for sale (in the far eastern districts) that are priced at less than $ 200,000.

Looking forward little change can be expected in March. Expect more inventory shortages driving prices higher, while fraying the nerves of buyers desperate to buy properties while interest rates remain at historically low levels. Low mortgage interest rates continue to fuel the inventory short market. With five year rates available as low as 2.99 percent, how can a buyer not be motivated to purchase a property?

Toronto Real Estate Market Update – December 2013 Year End Summary

There were no surprises in the data related to the Toronto residential market for the last month of 2013. Since the late spring the Toronto market has been very robust, outpacing comparative months in 2012. December was no exception, with 4,078 residential properties reported sold, almost 14 percent higher than the 3,582 properties reported sold in December 2012. Also as in previous months, the average sale price was up sharply at $520,398, almost 9 percent higher than the average sale price of $477,756 at the end of 2012.

Increases in average sale prices were particularly high in the case of detached and semi-detached Toronto homes. In December detached homes saw average sale prices rise by 18.9 percent to $864,351, and semi-detached prices rose to $ 644,423, an increase of 15.9 percent. The overall average sale price increase was tempered by an increase of only 7.6 percent in the case of condominium apartments. Having said that condominium apartment sales increase by almost 21 percent in December, while detached property sales declined by 6.7 percent, and semi-detached properties increased by only 8.8 percent. These disjointed numbers point, of course, to a supply problem. At the end of 2013 there were only 11, 418 properties for sale in the greater Toronto area. This compares vary unfavourably with the 13,241 at the end of 2012, almost 14 percent fewer properties available for sale year over year.

By year end the greater Toronto area compiled sales of 87,111 residential properties. In 2012 only 85,496 homes were reported sold. Although this only represents an increase of about 2 percent, 2013’s results came in as the fourth best year in the history of Toronto and area sales. The record for sales remains 2007 at 93,193 reported sales, followed by 2011 (89,096), 2009 (87,308) and now 2013. This year’s results were only marginally less than the third best year on record.

The consensus is that 2014 is likely to resemble the results of the 2013 resale market. Prices are expected to increase less robustly than in 2013, registering an equal or slightly higher number of sales in 2014 as compared to 2013. There are some potential problems for the market going forward. The above-noted levels of availability of resale houses for sale are exceptionally low. Currently the months of available inventory are only 2.5 months for the greater Toronto area, and only 2.6 months for the City of Toronto. Toronto’s eastern trading areas have eye-popping inventory levels of less than 2 months, not nearly enough to accommodate buyers’ demand. Unfortunately these low inventory levels are having a direct impact on average prices. Low inventories are resulting in multiple bids for available properties causing prices to rise at alarming rates – i.e detached and semi-detached home prices rose by 18.9 and 15.9 percent respectively in December.

If you are a Toronto area home owner these increases are psychological pleasing, but the negative side is that they are moving house prices to levels that are inconsistent with average household incomes. In 2013 average household incomes increased by 2.4 percent, substantially less than average house prices. So what has been sustaining the robust Toronto resale market? Simply, mortgage interest rates. Notwithstanding an increase the summer of 2013, mortgage interest rates continue to hover near historical lows. Toronto and area homes remain affordable because of the current mortgage interest rates. An increase in rates, particularly a sizeable increase of more than 1 percentage point, would significantly impact the market. The good news is that rates are not expected to rise.

Based on the performance of the Canadian economy and the signals being sent by the Bank of Canada, the earliest rates are expected to rise is in the latter half of 2014, and perhaps not until 2015. Notwithstanding the U.S Federal Reserve’s decision to reduce quantative easing (by buying fewer bonds each month going forward) the latest employment numbers do not indicate that either the American or Canadian economies are strong. In December Canada lost 45,900 jobs, increasing the jobless rate to 7.2 percent, and the U.S saw an increase of only 74,000 new jobs. That being the case, do not expect mortgage interest rates to rise. However even these low interest rates can support a market with rapidly rising sale prices for only so long without a corresponding increase in household incomes. That is not going to happen.

So from this corner we anticipate a very strong market for the first half of the year, clearly out pacing last year over the same period. The second half should moderate as prices continue to rise and the threat of increased mortgage interest rates becomes more likely. Sales between 85 – 87,000 are likely – not because of demand, but rather availability – and with a year-end average price coming in at approximately $ 540,000 or 3.5 percent higher than the $ 523,036 achieved in 2013.

Green Condo Checklist

Toronto Real Estate Market Update October 2013

October marked the fifth consecutive month in which reported sales of residential properties have outpaced the same month in 2013. Since June the greater Toronto market place has produced 31,049 property sales. During the same period last year only 25,987 properties were reported sold. This represents an increase of over 5000 property sales or 19.2 percent. October’s results were a carbon copy of this 4 month period. 8000 properties were reported sold. An increase of 19.2 percent compared to the 6,713 properties reported sold in October 2012. October’s results clearly have dispelled any notion that the recent increase in sales activity in the greater Toronto area was an aberration.

Previous market updates posited that the recent increase in sales activity may have been due to a perceived fear that mortgage interest rates were climbing higher. Increases in interest rates combined with the rising average sale price for Toronto properties would make home ownership unaffordable for a large number of potential buyers, in particular first time buyers. During the month of October mortgage interest rates actually came down. Five year fixed rates at 3.49 percent are now available. Since rates are not now anticipated to increase anytime soon, Toronto’s strong resale market is not likely to abate and will continue into 2014. The increasing cost of purchasing a house in Toronto and perhaps the intervention of the Federal Minister of Finance are the only factors likely to curb the current strong market.

Adding to these strong market conditions is the lack of available properties for sale. In October 13,110 new listings were delivered to the resale market place. This is a decline of 4.2 percent compared to the 13,685 delivered in 2012. Heading into November only 18,557 properties were available to buyers in the greater Toronto area. Last year there were 20,737, a decline of 10.5 percent. Interestingly sales of semi-detached homes declined by 2.4 percent in the Toronto market place. This decline was not due to demand, but to supply. This is reflected by the fact that in October the average sale price for semi-detached house sales in Toronto increased by 11.7 percent, almost the equivalent of the increase in the average sale price of detached homes (12.4 percent).

May of this year established the highest average sold price in the greater Toronto area at $ 540,544. October came very close to matching that achievement. The average sale price for all properties sold was $539,058, a 7.4 percent increase compared to the average sale price of $502,127 produced in October 2012. The average sale price for detached homes in the City of Toronto came in at $873,509. Semi-detached homes were a little less expensive at $642,112. Unfortunately there is not much supply for buyers to choose in the case of semi-detached homes. In Toronto’s central core area the cost of a detached house was $1,369,135, this is slightly off from the $1,397,683 it cost to by a similar type house in September.

Generally high end, luxury home sales (properties having a sale price of $ 1 Million or more) continued the improvement witnessed in September. In October 550 properties were reported sold in this category. This compares very favourably to the 378 sold in October 2012, and the 371 sold in October 2011. An increase of approximately 50 percent. 90 of these high end sales exceeded $ 2 Million. 8 of these 90 reported sales were condominium apartments, the rest were detached homes. No semi-detached property sales exceeded $ 2 Million.

Condominium apartment sales have continued to do well in the second half of 2013. In October condominium apartment sales exceeded the results of the overall market. Sales increased by 20.4 percent in the City of Toronto compared to last year. The increase in sales was accompanied by an increase in average sale prices. In October the average sale price of a condominium apartment was $ 384,441, an increase of 7.2 percent. Notwithstanding the improvement in condominium sales, they still take longer to sell than other types of properties, averaging 33 days in the in the City of Toronto. Overall sales in the greater Toronto market place (including condominium apartments) were achieved in 27 days. Sales were much faster for various housing types and various areas of the City. For example sales of semi-detached homes in the eastern trading districts took place in only 13 days. Sales of these types of homes were even faster in the central districts, coming in at an astounding 12 days. Condominium apartment sales brought the overall average for days-on-market to 27 days.

Looking forward more of the same can be expected in November and December, with of course, the seasonal adjustment coming to play. There is simply no economic change that is anticipated that might cause the current market conditions to change.

Prepared by Chris Kapches, Chestnut Park Real Estate Limited, Brokerage

Green Home Checklist

Toronto Real Estate Market Update September 2013

Since June the Toronto residential resale market place has outpaced sales achieved in the same month in 2012. September was no exception. September’s performance was very strong. 7,411 sales were reported for the month, far out-distancing the 5,687 sales reported in September 2012. This represents a 30 per cent increase. August’s increase, compared to August 2012, was 22 per cent.

These strong numbers are no doubt being driven by consumer concern over increasing mortgage interest rates. In the last few months rates have increased by more than 30 per cent. The fear is that rates will continue to rise throughout 2013 and into 2014. The strong performance by the Toronto area market place in part is an indication of buyers making buying decisions today that would otherwise have been made in 2014.

All property types showed very strong agains compared to the same period in 2012. In the City of Toronto detached home sales were up by 31.7 per cent, semi-detached by 13.3 per cent, townhomes by 18.3 per cent, and condominium apartments by 31.5 per cent. Similar data emerges from the 905 trading area.

It is not surprising that the average sale price continued to rise in September. The average sale price for all properties sold in the greater Toronto area was $533,797, an increase of 6.5 per cent compared to September 2012’s average sale price of $501,326. In the City of Toronto the average sale price was even higher, coming in at $571,410. Last year it was $547,901. Detached and semi-detached homes in the City of Toronto are the most expensive housing types. The average price for a detached house was $856,169 in September. Semi-detached homes were less expensive, but still pricey at $616,049. It is not surprising to see buyers rushing to take advantage of still low interest rates. Five year fixed mortgages are still available at 3.69 per cent, and in some instances as low as 3.59 per cent. The most expensive homes in Toronto are detached properties located in the central core of the city. The average price for a detached home in the central core was $1,397,683. Last September the same property sold for $1,224,940, an increase of more than 14 per cent.

Not only were a lot of sales achieved in September at higher average sale prices, but properties sold in very fast order. All properties (on average) that came to market in September in the entire greater Toronto area sold in 27 days, 2 day faster than last year. The speed of sales was even faster depending on housing type and location. Detached homes coming to market in September in the City of Toronto sold in 22 days. Semi-detached homes sold in an eye-popping 14 days. In Toronto’s central core they sold in only 11 days. This pace verges on frenzy. Only condominium apartment sales lagged behind other housing types. Condominium apartments took 36 days to sell, more than 30 per cent longer than the overall market pace. This pace is identical to the rate at which condominium apartments sold in September 2012.

Collingwood Real Estate Market Update

After a brief pause in August which registered steady but not breathtaking sales, the Georgian Triangle real estate market appears to have rallied to the pace-setting groove to which it has apparently become accustomed this season, recording more sales for the month of September than any year since 2005. Some of these sales may have been spurred by the recent increase in fixed term borrowing rates and the prospect of further tightening in the lending regime, prompting some buyers to get off the fence and commit to purchasing. But rather than being a temporary and anomalous blip September’s numbers appear to be part of a broader phenomenon attributable to the Georgian Triangle real estate market being on firm ground and benefitting from the ongoing comparative value, attractiveness and affordability of property available for sale in the area. September’s results therefore build upon this year’s strong performance to date, suggesting that the Georgian Triangle is well positioned to move into the final quarter of 2013 with sustainable growth and healthy sales.

According to the Georgian Triangle Association of REALTORS® (“GTAR”) MLS® Statistic Report for September, 203 properties were sold logging a 28% increase over the 158 sales recorded in September of last year, and 15% more than the 176 sold in September 2011. While the surge in property sales was particularly concentrated in the $100-149,999, $250-349,999 and $600-699,999 ranges the strength of the market was generally felt across the board. In fact sales figures for this September were either better or equal to those for September of last year in every price category but one ($240-249,999). This month’s numbers bring year to date sales to 1644, 8% ahead of last year at this time when 1517 were recorded, and almost 16% ahead of the year previous when there were 1410 sales by the end of September. Total dollar volume for the month increased at an even higher level beating out last year’s performance by 35%, and updated year to date figures to reflect a 10% bump over last year.

New listings were up by 3% with 545 properties coming onto the market in September compared to 529 last year, bringing year to date figures to 5168, 3% behind last year’s total of 5316 at this time. With the disproportionately robust sales pace, however, inventory was down 3.5% from last year with only 2388 active listings recorded at the time that GTAR’s report was created, compared to 2476 last September, and even fewer than the 2501 active listings recorded at this time two years ago.

Not surprisingly, with sales outstripping supply, the average residential sales price year to date is almost 5.5% higher than last year coming in at $332,619 compared to $315,436 last year. The average sale price for single family residential properties for the month of September was $332,830, 3.5% more than the $321,501 average sale price last September. Measured over a twelve month period, the average sale price for this property type is up 6% year over year ($334,529 compared to $315,334) highlighting the steady price increases that have been racked up over the last year.

All in all prospects are good for a healthy fall market. Comparatively speaking, the Georgian Triangle continues to be well placed to weather changing economic conditions, including some variation in the lending environment. Given the tight market and fundamentals which support an optimistic forecast for property sales in the Georgian Triangle as we move into the final quarter of 2013, sellers contemplating putting their properties on the market would be well advised to do so, keeping in mind of course the old adage that pricing should reflect value in the property.

Prepared by Richard Stewart, VP and Legal Counsel Chestnut Park Real Estate Limited, Brokerage