Corinne McCabe , Broker

Do you have at least 20 per-cent home equity and need a new mortgage? Are your housing costs more than a third of your gross income? If you answered yes and yes, then you should mark January 1, 2018 on our calendar. That's when our banking regulator's new mortgage stress test officially kicks in. And if you meet the criteria above, you may not qualify for as big a mortgage next year as you do today. Will this create a little mini boom? Two consecutive months of rising sales in August and September confirm that buyers are surfacing again and Sellers in the Toronto area seem more confident with more listings coming to market. Agents are predicting a small flurry of buying as people rush to ink a deal before the new requirements come into effect.

The freehold market saw a 15 per cent increase for new listings in all sectors with the east end leading the pack, up over 20 per cent in new listings and 75 percent of the sales in the east sold over asking with plenty of bully offers as well. The central core saw a small increase in new listings but a whopping 50 per cent more sold over the prior week. Bidding wars are up 40 per cent throughout all neighbourhoods.

In the condo market new listings were up 13 per cent with 285 new units up from 253 units from the previous week with the central core leading the way. The units sold were up 10 per cent with a small decline of condos selling over the asking price. Condos that are priced to sell are being snapped up within days of them hitting the market and the sweet spot are condos listed from $400k to $700K.

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Port Hope, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 250 sales representatives selling and leasing homes and condominiums in all the vibrant communities we work in. Our brand is well recognized internationally thanks to our unique affiliation with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Our sales teams meet weekly to discuss market conditions, trending topics, and anecdotes that more accurately reflect the true temperature of the real estate market.

We’ve recently noticed a trend of Realtors walking around and playing with yo-yo’s. Yes, that well known toy that goes up and down the string, up and down, up and down.  Forgive us if our emotions are playing out with our toys because the market is starting to feel a little like a yo-yo. One week the market is taking off and then we take a break for the long weekend. The next week we see the listings come out and think up it will go. Then we listen to the government introduce new mortgage rules and we start to wonder if this is the week it will slow down.  But wait, maybe changes to mortgage rules will mean a rush of buyers trying to purchase before the new rules come into effect. Up and down, up and down. In every market there are still people that need and want to buy and sell. People move for life-style and life changes, babies and retirement. Our market is still moving and from what we see it is still moving in an upward direction.  There are still multiple offers on hot properties and the condo market continues to shine.

The freehold market continues to follow the long weekend pattern.  After taking a breather for Thanksgiving we note that as expected the listings are up with people coming to market after waiting out the long weekend.  And as we saw the regular decline of listings before the long weekend we are never surprised that sales are down the week after the holiday break. Listings increased 25% over the previous week though it was interesting to note a slight decrease in listings in the west end compared to a huge increase of 82% in the east end. What we do note with some concern is that the number of listings that sold above their asking price has declined again to 26% from the peak of nearly 50% only four short weeks ago.

The condo market, as we know, cares less for long weekends and acting like the rebellious teen compared to the mature freehold market decided to go in the exact opposite direction. Long weekend and Thanksgiving aside we actually saw a slight decline in new condo listings, down to 253 from 295 the previous week and sales stayed essentially the same moving up slightly to 141 over the 134 sold in the previous week.  Condos that sold above their advertised price represented 34% of the total sales for the week and this is a number that  has remained fairly consistent throughout the fall market.Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Port Hope, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 250 sales representatives selling and leasing homes and condominiums in all the vibrant communities we work in. Our brand is well recognized internationally thanks to our unique affiliation with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Our sales teams meet weekly to discuss market conditions, trending topics, and anecdotes that more accurately reflect the true temperature of the real estate market.

Although I'll go wherever my clients need me, I prodominately work the East side of Toronto, as it's what I know best.  I have been living in Danforth Village for over 10 years now, and it was Leslieville for 5 years before that. 

Recently I was thinking of all the contacts I've made over the years, and thought it would be neat to see on a map all the houses on the East side that I've either bought, sold or leased for my clients.  Well, here it is!  I figure I'll keep this map handy and update it from time to time. It's a great visual for me.

The point?.. 18 years as a Realtor, I have the experience and knowledge, so if you need anything on the East side, whether to buy sell or lease, I'm always available to help.

Call us unimaginative, but along with being thankful for family, good health and warm fall weather, this year we are going to be thankful for being Realtors®. Again. Sure, it has been and up and down and up kind of year and no we have not moved out of the near bottom ranking of jobs people like to hate, but nobody gets to explore and enjoy the city like we do. As the city learns to live a high-rise lifestyle we Realtors can enjoy some of the city’s most stunning views in the morning and wander amongst the grand homes of Lawrence Park in the afternoon. Condo owners have a bit more to be happy about as overall price growth in that sector continues to outstrip the single home market but recent stats from the Toronto Real Estate Board show all house types up year-over-year in the 416. Happy Thanksgiving!

In the condo market there was a modest decline in new listings as we head into the Thanksgiving long weekend with listings down 12% to 276 from 314 the previous week. Buyers can be thankful, though Sellers are definitely not, that the percentage of condos selling above their listed price continues to decline. This week only (yes, only) 27% of condos sold over their advertised price, down from above 40% in early-September.

In the freehold market the decline in new listings was more pronounced, down 17% from the previous week. While the condo market seems to have found its identity (just keep going up), the freehold market still seems to be looking for stable footing.  We are witnessing a bit of everything, with some listings reducing their prices after a few weeks and some still increasing their price when they don’t get a bidding war on offer night. Bidding wars are still happening with 35% of homes selling above their list price, just not to the same extent they were in the ultra hot spring market.