Corinne McCabe , Broker

Last week we waited in anticipation for an advanced weather prediction from nothing less than a couple of famous rodents. Ground Hog Day was a split decision but it made us wonder if we could use a similar technique for predicting the exact moment the spring market hits. Our suggestion is to put a green bin out on the sidewalk to see how the local racoons react. A knocked over bin indicates the spring market has started but if it’s frozen to the ground we have to wait another two weeks. Thoughts?

In the freehold resale market there is a strong indication that spring has sprung. Last week listings were up 54% from the previous week while sales climbed 40%. Typical of a sudden jump in new listings there is a lag of about a week before we see an uptick in sales. This is mainly due to the holdback period. While only 49% of existing homes sold at or above the list price we expect that percentage to improve significantly over the coming weeks. While the hottest area has been the east core, particularly in the mid-range price point, last week it was the west core that was the star with over 65% of properties sold at or above the list price.

The condominium sector may end up being the shining light of Toronto’s real estate market. Last week, new listings edged up 15% (almost entirely from the central core) while the number of sales improved by a remarkable 40%.  What is more interesting is that sales of suites at or above the list price rose from an already healthy 22.4% to a near all-time high of 28.9%. In both the east and west core of the city, there were almost as many sales as new listings. (35 to 37 units).

It’s  hard to believe that we are already one month into 2016. This winter is already the second warmest on record thanks to our friend El Nino. In real estate terms, mild winters are a blessing for those intrepid Realtors. It means no snow drifts to climb over, no hunting for parking spots while out showing and less layers to wear. Of course this would all be great if there were properties to show but our research indicates that listings in both the freehold and condo sector have backed off substantially from one year ago while demand has not wavered.

In the freehold sector, listings continue to be a source of concern. One year ago there were 221 new listings compared to just 120 this year. Sales on the other hand are brisk. Our records indicate 115 sales last week compared to a mere 74 for the same period last year. It is interesting to note that last year only about 53% of homes sold at or above asking while this year that percentage has climbed to 66.7. The hottest area was the east core where nearly 90% of homes sold at or over the asking price.

A similar market exists in the resale condominium sector. Listings are off about 20% while sales are up by 32% from one year ago. Last year sales at or over the list price were a very respectable 18.9% while this year we are reporting 22.4%. While the number of new listings has remained stable in the east and west, there is a noticeable drop in the central core, proving once again that demand still exists for central condos.

It’s been a few weeks since we last reported and this being the beginning of a brand new year we wanted to get off to an early AND fresh start. Here’s a recap of what we are all about…Our market insights give you a quick snapshot of what’s happening in the core neighbourhoods of the city. We track listings and sales of homes and condos from the 401 to the lake and stretch as far east as the Beaches and as far west as Bloor West Village.  To truly understand and gauge the temperature of the real estate market in Toronto we scour the data available to us and record key metrics such as the number of properties in various price ranges and how many are being traded at or above the list price. The research is extensive and time consuming but provides our agents and their clients with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions.  Today is the starting point on a year-long journey.

In the freehold sector, listings are currently at an all-time low. By comparison, in late May of 2015 we had nearly 500 new listings on the market. Last week we recorded an impossibly low 45. The lack of listings did not deter buyers however. In the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day we recorded 27 sales with just under half of them at or above the list price. In one situation we saw one mid-priced detached home property sell over $200k more than the list price.

Not surprisingly, the condominium market is also experiencing low listing activity. Just 153 properties were listed throughout the core of the city last week. A surprising 14% of the 68 condos that sold traded at or above the list price. We are well off the record number of listings that we will see at the height of the market but even with low levels of existing listings there are plenty of opportunities to find excellent end user or investment suites.

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Jordan, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 240 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 report on the true temperature of the real estate market.

Last week’s real estate market update could best be described by the simple phrase “no news is good news”. Across the downtown core it appears that while listings are inching lower, there is still plenty of appetite for buying a home. Give it time though. In talking with our agents we know that many buyers are waiting patiently for the spring market. In a few months pent up demand will return and buying a home in Toronto will look like Black Friday at a big box store in the United States.

Despite more resale homes coming on the market in the central core, the east and west brought the overall number of listings down by 3% last week. Sales also dropped from 141 units in the previous week to 133 units; however, we are still reporting that over 42% of transactions took place at or above the list price, which is consistent with previous years. There are clear indications that on a year-over-year basis we are still well ahead of 2014.

Like the freehold sector, the condominium counterpart is behaving in a similar manner. Listings are down by 12% while sales are down by 7%. That 5% difference reflects the continued health of the condo market in Toronto. Additionally the number of sales at or above the list price has backed off less than 1% from the previous week, coming in at a respectable 19.4%.

Is it the last hooray or the last hurrah?  Either way, we're entering that phase now...

After a brief dip a few weeks ago, the number of new listings in both the freehold and condo sectors jumped last week. While this increase is still much lower than historical averages it forces the question…what gives? The simplest answer is that we are witnessing the last hooray before the listing taps start to close over the winter holidays.

While we recorded a healthy 41.6% increase in available listings in the freehold sector it is interesting to note that there are 27% fewer listings on the market compared to the same week one year ago. Having fewer listings hasn’t cooled the buying side. In fact, sales are greater than what were recorded in 2014 and the number of sales at or above the list price is slightly higher than the past year (49% compared to 45%). Of notable interest is the significant increase of listings in the ultra-high end market ($3M+) which climbed from 23 to 44 available listings last week in the central core bringing the total number of listings in this price category to 159.

At this point in the year, it’s fair to say that the condominium sector is the favourite child of Toronto’s real estate market. Compared to last year there are only 20 more condos available for sale across all price points but it is the sales numbers that truly astound. Last year at this time we recorded just 93 sales compared to the 205 sales that happened across Toronto’s core neighbourhoods last week. Of those sales, 20.5% happened at or above the list price. Wow!

With listings in both the freehold and condo sectors slowing down as we near the end of the month, the debate rages on. Should buyers wait until the New Year to purchase a new home or jump into the market now? There are different points of view on this topic. If you wait there will be more choice BUT you will be competing with all the other buyers who are also waiting for the spring market. More buyers bidding on the same home will drive prices higher. If you buy now there is less choice but fewer buyers. Naturally, life is less complicated as a seller. 

As expected, new freehold listings were down last week.  Our target prediction was outshot as we saw listings cut in half in the downtown core.  The number of recorded sales however was only down 26.6% and we still saw a high level (53.8%) of those sales happening at or above the list price. While the high-end home seems the most affected by the slowing market there were segments that fared very well. They included the $700k to $1.5m price range in the central core and the $400k to $700k price range in both the east and west cores.

The condo sector is experiencing similar traits as the freehold sector however not nearly as obvious. Listings have backed off by 46% however sales only dipped by 20%. Of those sales, 16.7% happened at or above the list price. Clearly the condo sector has held its own throughout 2015 and with fewer new condo completions on the horizon for 2016 as well as continued strength in the freehold sector, we believe that this segment of Toronto’s real estate market will remain strong going into 2016.

With no distractions to stand in our way for at least the next month we knew that we would see a return to a more traditional fall market. Things got off on the right foot two weeks ago and the steady pace of more listings and sales has continued just as we predicted. With two months left in 2015 there is still plenty of transactions on the horizon and our research shows there are plenty of buyers waiting for the perfect home.

Freehold listings are up for the third week in a row reaching just shy of 400 units in the downtown core.  The single biggest growth segment being in the $1.5M- $3M price range in the central core. Overall, this represents just 4.5% fewer listings than the same week one year ago. While sales are also trending 8.7% higher than the previous week they aren’t as high as they were last year (200 compared to 229). Homes trading at or above the list price is at a very respectable 55%, well within the range we have seen for a strong fall market.

Following three straight weeks of falling resale condominium listings last week we witnessed a 14.4% spike in available units. The number of sales remained unchanged from the previous week (216) and the percentage of units sold at or above the list price was a very healthy 23.1%. The hot spot of the week was the $400k-$700k segment in the east core where over half the units sold at or above the list price. Overall, sales are up 13.1% more than a year ago.

While the Blue Jays post season run came to a halt last week Toronto’s real estate market is having a run of its own.  Now that the election is over, and the world DIDN’T end, Sellers can go back to selling and Buyers can go back to buying…..and buying they did….in spades. Unless you count Halloween as a significant event, we should see a steady trading pace for the next few weeks.

Listings improved slightly in the freehold sector last week. While demand is still extremely high, the 3% increase in available listings caused a significant rise in multiple offers last week moving from a low of 36% two weeks ago to nearly 59% last week. The number of sales shot up 63% from 113 to 184 units in the downtown core. The hot district shifted back to the east core where over 70% of homes traded at or above the list price.

Listings in the resale condominium sector are down for the third week in a row. Inventory of condo listings has not been this low since February 20th, 2015 (with the exception of one week in late August). Sales on the other hand jumped by nearly fifty units since last week to 216. Sales at or above the list price now hovers at 24.1% with the $700k-$1.5m range in the central core being the hot spot last week by registering 6 out of 18 sales at or above the list price.

In our latest Market Insight we suggested that the reason listings were down was a reaction to the upcoming Federal Election. While there is little reason to believe that, whatever the outcome, home prices would be adversely affected, we wanted to prove that the theory was sound. We have been keeping records on downtown Toronto real estate for just over three years but only through one other election, that being last year’s municipal election which took place on October 27th. We went back to the beginning of October 2014 and discovered that freehold listings decreased by 31% over the previous week while sales remained steady. The following week, October 17th, freehold listings backed off another 17% and sales slowed. By the next week the polls were reporting a clear lead for Mayor Tory and with the election essentially a fait accompli listings improved by 8% and sales shot up 64%. Immediately after the election, both in terms of listings and sales, activity returned to normal levels. 

According to Anthony Codling, housing analyst at the broker Jefferies, who has studied the last seven UK elections; “On average, and when compared to the level of transactions at the time of an election, transactions have been higher in the period six to 12 months prior to and one to six months after an election but the four months immediately preceding elections have typically seen housing transactions 3% to 8% below the level seen at the time of an election.  In our view, this confirms what we believe many intuitively believe; that the uncertainty regarding elections will delay a prospective homeowner’s decision to purchase a home.”

In the freehold sector, we have further proof of the theory. Listings again have dropped by another 3% while the number of sales remained unchanged. It is interesting to note that sales at or above the list price decreased from 70.6% two weeks ago to 62.5% last week, so while there are still plenty of buyers in the market they appear to have calmer heads come offer night. The west core continues its streak as the hot neighbourhood with more listings and more sales than the usually hot East core.

The condominium resale market remained relatively unchanged in terms of listings last week however sales improved for the fourth straight week. While last week’s growth was a more moderate 4% over the previous week it does show the continued strength of this segment of the overall Toronto real estate market. Even with 20.9% of those sales taking place at or above the list price, it is nowhere near the record level of 31.6% set the previous week.

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Jordan, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 240 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 report on the true temperature of the real estate market.

What’s up with Toronto’s real estate market? By all accounts, this is a different fall market than one we are used to. Listings are down by as much as 31.7% for freehold homes but are up by 6% in the condo sector compared to a year ago. Unit sales are tracking similarly year over year in both the condo and freehold sectors. In discussion with our sales agents it is clear that the single key factor responsible for low inventory levels rests on the upcoming federal election. While the outcome will certainly not have an immediate or significant impact on home values most sellers are simply waiting it out.  Our research indicates that buyers outnumber sellers by approximately 5 to 1 in the city’s core neighbourhoods.

As mentioned, freehold listings have backed off by about 12% from the previous week however sales are up by 13.5%. It is interesting to note however that the percentage of listings selling at or above the list price decreased slightly from 73% to 70.6%. Despite world turmoil, home demand remains stronger than the previous year when only 65% of homes sold at or above the asking price. While the east core has been consistently hot for most of the year, last week it was the west core that was the new champ as nearly 80% of homes were sold with buyer competition. 

The condo resale market has posted another exceptional week. Sales have been on an upward trajectory throughout the Fall market, climbing an additional 15% last week from 187 to 215 units. New listings are down 14% overall since the previous week despite a significant rise in entry level ($200k-$400k) condos in the downtown core. Condos sold at or above the list price hit a new all-time high percentage last week with 31.6% beating out the previous record of 30% set in late May of this year.

Two weeks ago we witnessed a tsunami of new listings in downtown Toronto but a relatively lackluster sales performance left us feeling kind of empty. We made the bold statement that perhaps the reason sales were so low was because most of the new listings were holding back offers until the following week. We bravely predicted that sales would spike dramatically soon after and we are happy to report that we were right on the money. We didn’t need a crystal ball; our prediction was based on a solid understanding of Toronto’s real estate market.

Freehold listings climbed another 24% last week as Sellers all across the city take advantage of continued strong demand for homes. This was particularly evident in the $1.5M + market throughout all core neighbourhoods where listings shot up over 250%. Sales outperformed with an overall increase of 310% over the previous week but sales of homes at or above the list price jumped to 73%, one of the highest levels since March of this year.  The east core was the shining star of the week where 87% of all homes sold over the asking price.

The resale condominium market is not showing any signs of slowing down. While listings throughout the core only increased by a nominal 3% it was the nearly 30% increase in sales that caught our eye. Overall, 22% of all condos across the downtown core sold at or above the list price. While the biggest gain in sales volume took place in the central part of the city it was the east and west cores that attracted the most buyers with nearly 50% of condos being sold at or above the list price.

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Jordan, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 240 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 report on the true temperature of the real estate market.

And just like that, as if someone flipped a switch, the Fall market started. It seems like a repeat from last year. The signal is as clear as the Snowbird’s last flyby…a salute to the end of summer holidays and return to the high stresses of multiple offers. Agents are out preparing listings while contractors, painters, and stagers stand at the ready. Our offices are stocking up on coffee in preparation.

Listings are up. Not just a little. Last week we saw new listings double to just over 400. The largest increase took place in the east core where sellers took to the market in droves. New listings were up a remarkable 500% while calmer heads prevailed in the west with a more realistic 53% increase in listings. With all the new activity one would expect increased sales activity however it appears that all the new listings just gave buyers more choice. There is also a subtle factor that is often overlooked. In a response to low listing levels over the summer, most new listings have offer dates for the following week. This means that, if we are right, next week there will be a substantial spike in the number of sales in the core.  It will be interesting to see if we move the needle higher than the current 50% level for homes sold  at or above the list price.

The condo sector, still the shining star of Toronto’s real estate market, performed slightly better. Listings were up by a very reasonable 37% while sales backed off by only 22% from the week earlier. A full 16.5% of all sales happened at or above the list price. Still, our research indicates that condos located in more neighbourhood-y locations, particularly lofts,  continue to outperform large downtown towers. Clearly, buyers are making lifestyle choices and are willing to pay slightly more for something other than the sky-high experience.Sept

Free weekend alert. If you think your inner clock is out of whack, you are right. The holiday gods are making up for that ridiculously early Easter and giving us an extra week of summer. The real estate market woke up to this realization last week as well. After a quick uptick in listings and activity the market backed off to traditional summer levels. Our feeling is that there are a lot of last-minute trip takers out there doing their best to squeeze out a few more summer days.

Take for example the freehold sector. After a 10% jump in listings two weeks ago levels went down 20.7% last week. It is interesting to note however that sales across the downtown core jumped almost 40%. With large discrepancies in listing to sales the core is eating away at existing inventories which could create bigger demand in the fall. A further indicator of market strength is the number of sales at or above the list price. While dipping down from the previous week we are still at a healthy 55% for this reporting period.

In the condominium sector new listings have remained relatively unchanged over the last week while sales are down a little over 10% (from 200 units to 181 units).  Sales at or above the list price are currently at 16.6% which is a solid indicator that the condo market is trading well. In the central core we noted a significant increase in luxury condos coming to market last week while there was a decline in number of mid-priced listings ($400k to $700k).

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Jordan, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 240 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 report on the true temperature of the real estate market.

Now that the Pan Am Games are officially over, and the CNE has started, bad drivers are once again abusing the left lane, traffic in the west end is a disaster and minds are turning back to real estate. Another sure sign that Fall is just around the corner? Pent up housing demand is, once again, the number one topic of conversation.  Despite the extra week of Summer this year, an increase in activity leads us to believe that people are returning from vacation a little sooner than usual.

Case in point…the freehold sector. Listings have increased by 10% over the last two weeks and sales have increased by 11% but what is most interesting is the number of sales that have taken place at or above the list price. After sitting at around the 40% mark, last week that number shot up to almost 59%. Sold activity was the strongest in the entry level market ($400k-$700k) in the east core where the number of sales increased by 42%.

A similar picture of the overall real estate market exists within the condominium sector. Although the number of new listings decreased by 4.6% last week, sales increased by 3.6% to 200 units, with 21% of those sales happening at or above the list price (up from 19% two weeks ago).  Not surprisingly, there were fewer new listings in the central core’s entry level condo sector ($200k-$400K) yet it was that same sector that saw the biggest gain in sales.

Last week we were reminded of the one question that has stumped scientists the world over; if a tree falls in the forest, and there’s no one there to hear it, does it actually make a noise? In terms of downtown Toronto real estate it seems that we could ask a similar question….If there’s no one around to buy a house, does anything sell? Luckily keeping a sharp eye on everything related to the housing market provides us with all the answers to that question and more.

The freehold market took a well needed rest last week. New listings backed off by 17% from the previous week and sales eased by nearly 65%. While that seems like a large percentage, it is in line with traditional summer markets and the long weekend hangover. Naturally the true gauge of the health of the freehold market lies in the fact that nearly 40% of all homes sold happened above the list price. While certainly off its peak, that number is considered strong given the natural and cyclical slowdown in the market.

The condominium sector continues its conscious uncoupling to the general real estate market. Consider that while listings and sales are both down (3.3% and 10.8% respectively) more buyers are vying for this segment of the market which is forcing an increased percentage of sales happening at or above the list price. Over the past two weeks that number has increased 4%, from 15% to 19% which is only a few points off a record high. It is interesting to note that while sales across all price points have backed off slightly in the central core, they have increased substantially in both the east and west core.

There are two simple truths that we learned last week; Kanye West is NOT a Canadian and Toronto’s real estate market turned in another gold medal performance. Sure, things are slowing down a bit but that’s more a seasonal tendency. What catches our eye is the fact that while listings are way down in both the freehold and condo sectors, sales are only down a little. Clearly demand is still raging downtown but supply continues to be the major issue.

Nowhere is the supply and demand conundrum more evident than in the freehold sector where supply is down 19% from the week earlier and sales backed off by 6.7%. While that 12.3% spread is significant, we also noticed that fewer homes were selling in multiple offers. Our agents are reporting less competition at the offer table which leads us to conclude that many buyers are taking a temporary hiatus from the market. This is especially evident in the $1.5M+ market across the downtown core where sales have backed off over 42% from a week earlier.

The condo sector is exhibiting the same traits as the freehold sector with a drop of 9.4% in available listings compared to the previous week. We found it interesting to note that while the overall decline in the number of sales was 3.3%, that decline came from the east and west core of the city. In the central core there was actually a 20% increase in sales volume from the previous week primarily in the $400k-$700k price range.

A few weeks ago we determined that the Pan Am Games would contribute to lower listings and lower sales numbers because many people were planning on escaping the city. Hey, we were right….until everyone realized that the traffic just wasn’t that bad. It appears that now is as good a time as any to sell a home. So, if you are hiding out in parts unknown you might be missing out on that dream home.

The freehold sector had one of the single highest week over week changes with a noticeable 25.6% increase in new listings and a similarly grandiose 54.5% increase in sales last week. With that increase came slightly more demand as transactions at or above the list price edged up 2.5% from the previous week to stand at 54.5%. What stands out the most when we reviewed last week’s data was the amount of movement in the entry level home ($400k to $700k) across the city’s core where listings increased by 37%. While the single detached Toronto home has topped the million dollar mark, there is plenty of room for those on a more modest budget.

The condo sector has been fairly tame for the past few weeks. New listings have inched down 3% from a few weeks ago while sales have essentially remained unchanged. Higher end condo sales have taken a hiatus having registered a complete shut out on any condo above $1.5m. That falls in line with a recent article by Canadian Real Estate Magazine that reports that “demand for condos is at an all-time high as millennials and first-time buyers look to affordably enter the market while maintaining a property with some kind of appreciation value”. 

Last week’s market activity reads like a good news/bad news story. It’s kind of like Toronto traffic. Thanks to the Pan Am Games there is very little road construction, but the bad news is there’s one less lane to drive in. For those of us who have a short commute there’s always the bike but if a quick get-a-way to the cottage is needed we suggest you make your escape extra early.

It’s easy to see the freehold sector easing into the Summer market. Listings remained unchanged over the previous week, running at 308 new listings in the central, east and west core but sales have trailed off by 56.3% over the same period. The biggest decline comes from the higher end central core where sales of homes over $1.5M were cut in half from the previous week (to 17 units). There is some good news however. Homes selling at or above the list price increased by 3% last week, to 56.3%. We believe that buyers are still very active in the market place but are taking a bit more time to make their decision.

In the condo sector listings have increased 8.9% since the week prior but have remained consistent over the last month at (767 listings in the downtown core). Sales are also down by a marginal 4.9% which only represents about 10 sales over the week. It is worth reporting that the key indicator of the condo market health has to be the percentage of suites selling at or above the list price. Last week that percentage was at a very encouraging 24.5% level.

Are you confused by the HOV lanes? Wondering how you are going to make it around the city over the next month? Wondering if it will ever warm up? We wish we could help. But if the latest information on Toronto real estate is something you need, well, we’re the company for you. Every week we pore through the data and talk to our managers and agents on the street to get you the latest information…just like this;

After hitting nearly 500 new freehold listings in early May, things have slowed down as we enter the traditional Summer market. Last week we dropped to just over 300 new listings. It seems that buyers are still out in full force however as sales increased by 5% last week. We found it interesting that sales at or above the list price tapered down to 53.8%, one of the lowest numbers this year. We expect that sales may underperform during the month of July thanks to the Pan Am Games but demand will not slow down. This should make the fall market exceptionally busy.

Like the freehold sector, new condo listings backed off by 8.9% last week and we saw a 16% reduction in the number of units sold. While the numbers don’t show it, we believe the condo market remains strong as the indicator that we follow, the number of suites that sell at or above asking price, was a very healthy 25.5%. The mid-market condo ($700k to $1.5m) in the central core was one of the hotter segments of the market followed by the entry level condo ($200k to $400k) in both the east and west cores.

Noted business professor Aaron Levenstein once quipped that ‘statistics are like a bikini. What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital’. As big fans of statistics (and bikinis) we couldn’t agree more that’s why, every now and then, we like to look back a year and do a little market comparison to see if anything has changed. This week we “reveal” our findings.

It’s funny how everyone seems to complain about the lack of listings. The truth of the matter is that last year at this time there were nearly half as many freehold listings available on the market.  Sales continue to be strong year over year although comparatively the percentage of sales to listings last week was 51.7% vs 72.1% for the same week last year. The numbers indicate that demand may have slipped until you also consider the fact that both weeks recorded the same percentage of deals happening at or above the list price (59%).

The condominium sector is more interesting. Available new listings are up by about 48% from the same week one year ago while sales are up by nearly 65%.  Clearly the condominium sector has beaten all expectations. Where a year ago 20% of sales were trading at or above the list price, last week that number was 28%. Our research indicates that most of this is a result of first time buyers choosing condos over homes, due, in part, to affordability as well as lifestyle choices.